Large scale covid vaccination site for Thanet earmarked to open by end of February

A large scale vaccination centre for Thanet has been earmarked for opening at the end of February.

Plans for the hub were first revealed at a county council meeting in January where Wilf Williams, Accountable Officer for NHS Kent and Medway Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG), said the site would be set up at a shopping centre – assumed to be Westwood Cross.

Kent’s large scale sites are predicted to be able to give 20,000 vaccines per week. Mobile and outreach services for vaccinations will also be used.

South Thanet MP Craig Mackinlay says he lobbied for the centre. In his weekly briefing the MP said: “I spent much of last week in negotiations with various NHS bodies and a local property owner to secure a vaccination hub for Thanet; one that I had identified and made tentative approaches about some weeks ago as ideal to serve East Kent.

“I attended a site meeting last week. I am pleased to announce that the site that I identified has been secured. The formal announcement should be made this week so I will honour confidences and not disclose it here but I am delighted to have played a key part in getting the parties together and cutting through the painful processes which can allow good ideas to falter. I hope the community will be similarly pleased once this superb site has been formally announced.

“Numbers of new infections locally are falling dramatically. The time lag between infection, possible need for hospitalisation and premature death should show itself across these devastating numbers very shortly.

“As Parliamentarians, the decision as to how to unwind the damaging restrictions to normal life will fall to us. The time for those debates is rapidly approaching and I can only reiterate once more that once the vaccination programme has covered the most vulnerable there should be a rapid unwinding of lockdown measures as the societal cost, health cost and economic cost is becoming incalculable.”

The current covid positive rate for Thanet stands at 234.6 per 100,000 as of January 30. There have been 302 positive cases in the last seven days, a fall of 33% on the preceding seven days. The national rate is currently 242.8 per 100,000.

Some 10,490,487 people across the UK have now received the first dose and  501,957 have received both doses of either the Pfizer or the AstraZeneca vaccinations.

Kent and Medway NHS has opened two large-scale vaccination centres, with a third set to open from February 8 and Thanet in planning for the final week of February. The potential for further sites to support the wider roll out of the vaccination programme is being reviewed.

Large scale sites

Folkestone – Folca building (the former Debenhams building)

Gravesend – The Woodville (Woodville Halls)

Tonbridge – Angel Centre (from 8 February)

Thanet – details to follow

Kent and Medway NHS says: “To use these centres you must have an appointment. People in the priority groups will receive a letter from the NHS inviting you to book.

“If you have a booking already arranged with a GP service when you get the national letter; please keep your original appointment with the GP service. This will help us manage supplies effectively and keep slots free for other people.”

Kent and Medway vaccines given:

279,363

First dose

• over 80 years 84,547 (86.3%)
• 75-79 years 50,991 (74.3%)
• 70-74 years 27,495 (27.1%)
• under 70 years 93,726

Second dose

• over 80 years 16,083 (16.4%)
• 75-79 years 256 (0.4%)
• 70-74 years 185 (0.2%)
• under 70 years 6,080

_{Up to 31 January 2021}

GP vaccination hubs