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Changes to the childhood immunisation schedule - Information for health professionals

Some of the links included in this information lead to content created by other organisations and may not be available in Welsh. 

Important information for health professionals

There are changes to the childhood immunisation schedule in Wales during 2026. 

Detailed information about changes to vaccine recommendations for infants and children, including eligibility, can be found below on this page.  

For further details on the changes to the childhood immunisation schedule introduced in 2025 and 2026, please see Welsh Government Policy below:  

 

Resources for healthcare professionals 

toolkit for healthcare professionals has been prepared, which summarises all the resources and tools to support healthcare professionals through the changes to the routine childhood immunisation schedule. You can view the toolkit at: 

slide set has also been created to highlight key publications, you can view this resource at: 

 

Immunisation training resources and events 

In 2026 there are significant changes to the schedule.   

To keep you informed about these changes, you can find our healthcare professional awareness raising sessions at the links below. These sessions include recorded slide sets, lunch and learn sessions for different healthcare professionals, and question and answer webinars.

To view and book onto the sessions, visit: 

On this page

 

Background

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is an expert scientific advisory committee, which advises the UK government on vaccination and immunisation matters.  

Statements published by the JCVI set out the main changes to the childhood immunisation schedule in 2025 and 2026. To find out more about these changes, read the JCVI statements below:  

JCVI statement on a childhood varicella (chickenpox) vaccination programme - GOV.UK (external site) 

Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) statement on changes to the childhood immunisation schedule - GOV.UK (external site)  

Which vaccines will be given, and when?

Public Health Wales vaccination eligibility resources

The Routine immunisation schedules for Wales web page and linked PDF documents cover the current Public Health Wales immunisation schedule for Wales: 

Vaccination eligibility tools have been developed to support healthcare professionals to determine children's vaccination eligibility through the changes. You can find these here:

This MMRV eligibility tool is only applicable from 1 January 2026:

These 2 eligibility tools cover the period 1 July 2025 to 31 December 2025:

External eligibility resources 

UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) childhood vaccinations eligibility calculator 

Please read the Welsh policy document before using the UKHSA Childhood vaccinations eligibility calculator. 

Routine varicella (chickenpox) vaccination for young children from 1 January 2026 (WHC/2025/046) | GOV.WALES (external site)  

Changes to routine childhood and selective neonatal hepatitis B vaccinations (WHC/2025/019) [HTML] | GOV.WALES (external site) for further information. 

The UKHSA childhood vaccinations eligibility calculator can be accessed at:  Childhood immunisation eligibility calculator - Health Publications (external site)

 

Frequently asked questions about the changes
**Currently being updated**

MMRV programme: information for healthcare practitioners - GOV.UK (external site) 

 

Guidance

Guidance on changes to the childhood immunisation schedule in Wales:  

Changes to the childhood immunisation schedule: JCVI statement - GOV.UK (external site)  

JCVI statement on a childhood varicella (chickenpox) vaccination programme - GOV.UK (external site) 

MMRV programme: information for healthcare practitioners - GOV.UK (external site) 

 

 

Training resources and events

Online courses and training materials about a number of vaccines and diseases can be accessed via the E-learning page. 

Further training information and resources are provided on the Training Resources and Events page. 

The slides and recordings to provide detailed briefings to support Health Boards with local training are available to view on Training (sharepoint.com) (access for NHS healthcare staff). 

Clinical resources and information

Unscheduled immunisation record form: 

These unscheduled immunisation record form covers the period 1 January 2026:

These unscheduled immunisation record form covers the period 1 July 2025 to 31 December 2025:

CYPrIS Cover letter schedule change: 

The routine childhood immunisation schedule in Wales has been updated in CYPrIS to reflect that: 

  • Meningococcal group B vaccine (MenB) is scheduled for 12 weeks of age 

  • Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV) is scheduled for 16 weeks of age  

Any appointments made on or after the 3rd of November will display the new schedule changes. 

 

 

Green Book - Immunisation against infectious disease 

Immunisation against infectious disease - GOV.UK (external site) 

The Green Book has the latest information on vaccines and vaccination procedures, for vaccine preventable infectious diseases in the UK. 
 

Further resources

Please refer to the following Welsh policy document before using the following external documents: Changes to routine childhood and selective neonatal hepatitis B vaccinations (WHC/2025/019) [HTML] | GOV.WALES (external site)   

6-in-1 vaccine

Hepatitis B

MenACWY vaccine


Pneumoccocal

 

Patient group directions (PGDs) and protocols 

PGD templates for vaccines can be found on the Welsh Medicines Advice Service (external site) PGDs page. 

Public resources 

 

 

Data and surveillance