Vaccination for coronavirus
Guy's and St Thomas' is vaccinating patients against coronavirus (COVID-19) in line with the Government's guidelines.
For most children COVID-19 is mild, but those with certain medical conditions can become very unwell and need hospital treatment - they are over seven times more likely to be admitted to intensive care.
Vaccination will help to protect your child from getting seriously ill from COVID-19.
COVID-19 autumn and winter boosters
COVID-19 booster vaccinations are now being offered to children aged 6 months and over with a weakened immune system.
Eligible children will be invited to have their vaccination by their GP practice or hospital team.
How to book
Appointments for eligible children and young people can be booked online:
If your child is eligible you can book an appointment using the national booking system on the NHS website. Walk-in appointments are also available but please check the COVID-19 walk-in website for opening times.
If your child is eligible, appointments at Guy’s and Thomas’ need to be booked through the Trust’s vaccination booking system. Appointments for this age group cannot be made through the national booking system.
Where are vaccinations taking place?
Vaccinations will take place in a dedicated vaccination centre for children and young people at our Guy’s Hospital site - Francis House, 9 King’s Head Yard, London, SE1 1NA. Please see a map for details.
Please remember to bring along your red book (personal child health record) to the appointment so that we can record the vaccination in it.
What do we mean by ‘weakened immune’ system?
COVID-19 vaccinations are recommended for children with immunosuppression due to disease or treatment, including:
- Those undergoing chemotherapy or radiotherapy, solid organ transplant recipients, bone marrow or stem cell transplant recipients.
- Genetic disorder affecting the immune system e.g. deficiencies of IRAK-4 or NEMO, complement disorder, SCID)
- Those with haematological malignancy, including leukaemia and lymphoma
- Those receiving immunosuppressive or immunomodulating biological therapy
- Those on high or moderate dose corticosteroids
- Those on non-biological oral immune modulating drugs e.g. methotrexate, azathioprine, 6-mercaptopurine or mycophenolate
- Those with auto-immune disease who may require long term immunosuppressive treatments
- Children who are about to receive planned immunosuppressive therapy should be considered for vaccination prior to commencing therapy
If you have questions about whether your child should have a vaccination please email us at CovidVaccineBookings@gstt.nhs.uk or call 0207 188 4040.
If you are feeling unwell, please wait until you have recovered to have your vaccine.
More information
Find out more about who can get the vaccine.
Find out more about COVID-19 services in south east London.
For more information about vaccinations, including maps and frequently asked questions, visit the Guy’s and St Thomas’ website.
Flu vaccinations for children and young people are available through their GP, school or community clinic. Please visit the NHS website to find out more.
What to expect at your COVID-19 vaccination
Today's the day I have my COVID-19 vaccine. I'm going to explain what happens when you come to a vaccine centre like the ones at Guy's and St Thomas' hospitals.
First we check in with a member of staff, they're very friendly and ask for details like my name and date of birth.
Don't forget to sanitise your hands.
You may need to wait until it's your turn.
While we wait, let's talk about how the vaccine helps protect you and others around you.
Sometimes we come into contact with harmful germs which make us sick.
Our bodies try to fight off these germs by making special cells called antibodies, but sometimes we need a little extra help.
Vaccines help by teaching our bodies to recognise a germ and make antibodies to fight it.
Getting vaccinated means we're less likely to get COVID-19, or if we do catch it, it helps us to feel less unwell.
It also helps to stop spreading it to those around you keeping your friends and family safe. Oh it's my turn!
The vaccinator asks us a few questions to check it's okay for me to have the vaccine.
Don't be afraid to ask questions yourself, the staff are really friendly and helpful.
The vaccine is given by an injection into the arm, it's a small needle and you may feel a sharp scratch.
Just take a deep breath in and out. Done.
Wow that was so quick I hardly noticed.
You may be asked to wait for a few minutes afterwards just to check if you are okay.
After your vaccine it's normal to feel tired and your arm might ache a little bit so just take plenty of rest and be proud of yourself, you're helping to stop the spread of COVID-19.
What is it like at our vaccination centre?
We have planned our vaccination centre with children in mind.
When you arrive, you’ll meet our friendly staff.
We will welcome you and your parents or carers.
You’ll be invited to take a seat in our relaxing waiting area.
You can tell us if anything is worrying you about the jab and we can help.
You’ll be invited to our “Pod”, where we have puzzles, comic books and toys. Then, you’ll receive your jab.
You’ll be invited to stay with us for a little while afterwards.
You can have some snacks and we will give you an exciting certificate, which you can put up on your wall at home. You can also have your picture taken and send this to your friends to show them how brave you have been.
If you need more jabs in the future, we’ll be in touch.
Learn more about what it is like to visit our child-friendly vaccination centre.
Allergic reactions to coronavirus vaccines are very rare. They are as rare as allergic reactions to other common vaccines your child has received. Children with food allergies (including multiple foods and severe anaphylaxis), hayfever, allergic asthma, and eczema or urticarial rashes are not at higher risk of having an allergic reaction to coronavirus vaccines. These children can have the coronavirus vaccine at any vaccination centre.
Children with allergies to medicines (such as antibiotics or ibuprofen) can safely have the vaccine. Children who are receiving allergy desensitisation treatments, or being treated with the medicine omalizumab (Xolair®), can also have the coronavirus vaccine.
For children who have had confirmed anaphylaxis to a vaccine, or are allergic to any of the ingredients in the coronavirus vaccine (a list is available at vaccination centres), please talk to their GP or allergy doctor as it might be recommended to have the vaccine in a supervised, hospital setting.
The staff at the vaccination centres are trained to recognise severe allergic reactions and have the resources to treat them.
Contact us
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the allergy team:
- secretaries, phone: 020 7188 9525
- nurses, phone: 020 7188 9783
- dietitians phone: 020 7188 8494
Request a call back from our nurses online.
Read this information as a PDF
Read our leaflet about coronavirus vaccinations for children with allergies. (PDF 318Kb)