Covid: No walk-in vaccine centres in Harrogate as clinics already 'running at capacity'

The announcement on Monday that booster jabs were being made available without appointments was followed with some confusion as no Harrogate sites appeared on the NHS online walk-in finder.

Those eligible for their third jabs were being sent to the nearest sites in Leeds or Bradford, although a centre in Pateley Bridge has since appeared online.

The NHS North Yorkshire Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) has now explained that it is unable to open any more walk-in sites in the area due to capacity and supply issues.

A CCG spokesperson said: "All clinics are running at capacity and we will open walk-ins in a planned way as soon as we are able to.

"If we open walk-ins now it is likely we would exceed our vaccine allocation and there would be some disappointed people and negative feedback which we are trying to avoid."

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Appointment-based vaccines for over 50s and those with underlying health conditions are still available to book at local clinics via the national booking system.

Dedicated slots for 12 to 15-year-olds are also available at the Homecare Pharmacy site in Knaresborough.

These jabs for 12 to 15-year-olds are also being offered at schools and outside the district at the Askham Bar site in York, Leeds United's Elland Road stadium, the Northern Echo Arena in Darlington and Middlesbrough's Riverside Stadium.

The CCG said it is looking to add additional sites across North Yorkshire "as soon as possible".

It was announced last week that Harrogate's Great Yorkshire Showground will reopen as a vaccine centre for an expected busy period of booster jabs in December.

The venue - which was used as a vaccine site for most of the year before closing in August - will reopen for two weeks at the start of the month.

Public Health England figures show a total of 130,898 people in the Harrogate district have received their first vaccine dose and 122,140 people their second.

No figures are available for booster jabs.

Vaccine take up is lowest among 12 to 15-year-olds with just 18% receiving their single dose.

The CCG said everyone in this age group will be offered their vaccine by the end of November.

By Jacob Webster, Local Democracy Reporter