Free flu nasal spray for every child from Reception to Year 11: return the consent form online. Missed the school visit? Beacon Surgery clinic, 27 October.
School immunisation teams will be in schools across East Sussex over the next couple of months offering a free flu vaccine, given as a nasal spray, to every child from Reception to Year 11, and the county council is asking parents, carers and grandparents to check the consent form has gone back.
The council’s public health team made the appeal on 9 October. Without a returned form, the team cannot vaccinate the child at school.
How to say yes (or no)
Parents and carers should already have had an email or letter about the vaccination. That message carries a code for the child’s school, and consent is given online at susseximmunisations.co.uk using that code.
The NHS immunisation service adds three details worth knowing:
- if you do not have the code, ask your child’s school for it;
- the same form is used to say you do not want your child vaccinated;
- consent has to come from someone with legal parental or delegated responsibility, and you get an email confirming the choice you made.
You can also complete the form over the phone with the local team, and families whose children do not attend school are contacted through the council instead.
Darrell Gale, Director of Public Health in East Sussex, said: “It couldn’t be easier for children to be protected - it’s as simple as returning a consent form to your child’s school and the school immunisation teams will do the rest.”
Why the council is pushing now
Flu usually peaks in December and January, and the school sessions are usually finished by the end of November, the council says.
Mr Gale said: “Flu is a nasty virus that spreads more quickly among children than almost any other age group. It can have serious consequences and the best way to protect yourself and your family is to get the flu vaccination before winter kicks in.”
He added: “According to Department for Education figures, last winter 2.5 million days of school were missed across England, with flu being a major contributing factor. Not only can flu make children very sick, but it can also disrupt their learning.”
Take-up is the problem the council is trying to fix. It says the most recent NHS figures show that in 2024 only around half of primary school-aged children, and less than half of secondary school-aged children, were protected against flu.
Missed it at school? Catch-up clinics near Crowborough
The immunisation team runs catch-up clinics for children who could not be vaccinated at school. If your child’s school session has already passed when you return the form, the NHS service says you will be emailed a link to book a clinic appointment instead. Appointments are pre-booked, not walk-in, and some run after school, in the holidays and on Saturdays. One of the service’s six neighbourhood teams in Sussex is based in Uckfield and another in Heathfield.
The service’s published list, checked on 10 October, includes these nasal flu clinics in and around Crowborough, all booked on 01273 696011 extension 4931:
- Wednesday 21 October: Uckfield Library
- Monday 26 October: Uckfield, Belmont Centre
- Tuesday 27 October: Crowborough, Beacon Surgery
- Wednesday 28 October: Uckfield Library
- Thursday 29 October: Hailsham, Christ Church
Sessions offering the injected flu vaccine at Uckfield Library (21 and 28 October), Hailsham Christ Church (29 October) and the Belmont Centre in Uckfield (18 November) are listed as invitation only. The injection is offered to the small number of children the nasal spray does not suit.
From 1 December 2026, some pharmacies will also help catch up school-aged children who missed their vaccination with the school team, according to the UK Health Security Agency’s eligibility guide.
Questions parents ask
My child has a cold. Can they still have it? The UKHSA guide says a minor illness such as a cold is not a reason to delay, though a fever may be. A heavily blocked or runny nose can stop the spray getting into the system, so the vaccination can be put back until it clears.
Can the spray give my child flu? The spray contains a weakened live flu virus. UKHSA says it does not cause flu in children who receive it, and that unvaccinated people are not at risk from being near a recently vaccinated child. Children who are severely immunosuppressed may be advised by a doctor to avoid live vaccines, and the very few who live with someone very immunosuppressed may be offered an injection instead.
The rest of the household
The council says flu is spread by coughs and sneezes or by touching surfaces germs have landed on. Symptoms include fever, chills, headaches, aches and pains in the joints and muscles, and extreme tiredness. It can lead to serious complications for people with diabetes, respiratory conditions, neurological diseases such as multiple sclerosis, and heart, kidney and liver disease.
As well as young children, people over 65, pregnant women and people with long-term health conditions are particularly vulnerable and are eligible for a free vaccination. People in at-risk groups can get the jab by talking to their GP, practice nurse or a local pharmacy.
Under the UKHSA guide, all children aged 2 or 3 on 31 August 2026 are also eligible, usually through the GP. From 1 October, eligibility widened to everyone aged 65 and over, adults aged 18 to 64 in clinical risk groups, care home residents, carers, and close contacts of people who are immunocompromised.
What it means for you
- Got a child at a Crowborough school? Find the email or letter, take the school code, and fill in the form at susseximmunisations.co.uk before the team visits. No code? Ask the school office.
- Already missed the school visit? Return the form anyway: you will be sent a link to book a clinic, and the nearest is Beacon Surgery in Crowborough on Tuesday 27 October.
- Aged 65 or over, pregnant, or living with a long-term condition? You are eligible too: book through your GP or a pharmacy.
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