New chickenpox vaccine | News and events

The local NHS is raising awareness of a change to the MMR vaccine offer which means for the first time it will include a vaccination against chickenpox.

From the 5 January 2026 children are now being offered the MMRV vaccine, which protects against measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox (varicella). Chickenpox is a common infection which mostly affects children but spreads easily. Although it usually gets better on its own, it can be serious for some people such as adults, people who are pregnant, babies and people who have a weakened immune system.

The number of doses children are given depends on when they were born. Some older children will have already had one or two doses of the MMR vaccine which also protects against measles, mumps and rubella, but not chickenpox. The vaccination programme will offer one or two doses of the vaccine, depending on date of birth:

·         Children born on or after 1 January 2025 - one dose given at 12 months and one dose given at 18 months.

·         Children born between 1 July 2024 and 31 December 2024 - one dose given at 18 months and one dose given at 3 years 4 months.

·         Children born between 1 September 2022 and 30 June 2024 - one dose given at three years four months.

·         Children born between 1 January 2020 and 31 August 2022 who have not had chickenpox or the chickenpox vaccine - one dose given sometime between 1 November 2026 and 31 March 2028 – GP practices will contact people about this nearer the time.

Cali Makewell, Integrated Vaccination Service Lead with NHS Cambridgeshire & Peterborough, said: “Chickenpox can make people very ill, and we welcome the introduction of this vaccination which will help protect children from this nasty illness.

“These changes will also see the second dose of the MMR part of the MMRV vaccination brought forward from age three years four months to 18 months, for children turning 18 months on or after 1 January 2026. This small change will give children earlier protection, which is particularly important following outbreaks of measles in the UK over the past couple of years.”

Getting the vaccination is easy as GP surgeries will usually contact parents or carers about their child's MMRV vaccinations. This will usually be by letter, text message, phone call or email.