“NOTORIOUS challenges” in manufacturing flu vaccines among one of the reasons for a shortage of jabs at some local GP surgeries.

Speaking at a Royal Borough outbreak engagement board meeting, councillor Helen Price (TBF: Clewer & Dedworth East) said she found GPs and pharmacies didn’t have the flu shot despite being told to do so by the government.

She said: “People are being quite rightly exhorted to get yourself vaccinated. They try but then they’re told no you can’t because we haven’t got any vaccines.”

Cllr David Coppinger (Con: Bray) said he was “disappointed” to see Windsor’s situation, adding he had his flu jab in Maidenhead four weeks ago.

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The government and Public Health England have urged the over 50s and those with underlining health conditions to get their flu jab as the UK braces for difficult winter as it is predicted influenza and Covid cases will rise.

Caroline Farrar from the Frimley Clinical Commissioning Group said only some of the Windsor GPs haven’t received influenza shots, pinning the problem to the complex delivery model nationally.

Ms Farrar added it was not a “one town versus another” scenario.

Previously, the shortage of HGV drivers was blamed for forcing GPs to cancel flu jabs – but the council’s lead member for health, Cllr Stuart Carroll (Con: Boyn Hill), believed challenges around the manufacturing of the vaccines have contributed to this issue.

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Cllr Carroll, who has worked in manufacturing influenza vaccines, said: “Where you often see delays in influenza vaccines are among the most difficult to manufacture.

“They have notorious challenges coming off the manufacturing line to meet the appropriate yield requirements and quality assurance, and that does tend to lead to some challenges in supply year in, year out.

“But the reason why you can see differences from one area to another is that it is dependent on when a GP surgery or a pharmacy places its orders to then draw down stock from the national procurement or distribution of those doses.

“That’s why you can sometimes see variations from one area to another even when those areas are neighbouring, such as Maidenhead to Windsor.”

The virtual meeting took place on Monday, October 18.