Surge of interest in jabs as 1 July approached

Nearly 86,000 doses have been given, with 72% of over-18s having had both doses and 21% only having one so far.

Dr Nicola Brink said that ahead of 1 July – when fully vaccinated people from the Common Travel Area were allowed to travel in without isolation – more people had come forward.

‘We did see a surge of interest and I think that’s important,’ she said.

‘As we’ve always said, if someone initially declined a vaccination and has changed their mind, we’re very happy to accommodate that request. I think if we get up to 93%, double vaccinated adult population, we will have done really well. Anything extra would be a bonus. But I would be very happy with 93% double vaccinated.

‘That exceeded what I was expecting.’

A number of islanders have had their Covid-19 vaccination appointments changed because the centre at Beau Sejour is closing on certain days. A Health & Social Care spokesman said the changes have been made due to the lower number of islanders requiring their jabs. The current phase of the vaccination programme is coming to an end, and rather than running two small clinics it was decided it would be better to run one large one, they said.

There has been updated guidance given for young people going to organised activities.

Under-18s are not yet able to be vaccinated, but children – and in particularly teenagers – can catch and transmit Covid-19.

There are already rules in place that state that a child, who has been outside the island in the last 14 days, will need to be tested before going back into a school setting. Yesterday that was widened to include holiday and sports clubs run during the summer holidays. Tests are free and must be done up to 48 hours before the first session. This testing regime is likely to remain in place into the autumn term.

Dr Brink said the move was a recommendation for children attending organised activities.

‘We were specifically approached by some people running holiday facilities, holiday camps and so on, who asked what we could do to help them,’ she said.

n Young people’s tests can be booked at https://gov.gg/returntoeducation