Flu vaccination for teachers and school staff
On-site flu jabs for teachers, support staff and trust teams, planned around the timetable, INSET days and the children’s school vaccination programme.
Key point for school leaders: pupils from reception to year 11 are offered a flu vaccine through the NHS school programme, but staff are not. Unless a colleague qualifies for another reason, the NHS will not vaccinate them because of their job. A staff clinic closes that gap.
Why schools vaccinate their staff
Schools bring hundreds of people together indoors every day during the months when flu circulates. According to UKHSA’s Green Book, flu is highly infectious, and symptoms usually appear 1 to 3 days after infection. Vaccinating school-age children is part of the national programme because it protects the children and reduces spread to the wider community. A UKHSA-led study of the programme’s pilot areas in 2014/15 found lower GP consultations for flu-like illness, fewer respiratory hospital admissions and less confirmed flu than in areas where primary school children were not yet vaccinated, though the effect was smaller in adults.
The school programme does not cover the adults in the building. A teacher who is ill with flu is usually off for several days, which can mean supply cover, merged classes or cancelled interventions. A staff clinic does not remove that risk, but it gives every colleague a convenient chance to reduce it.
Who is already covered by the NHS?
- Staff aged 65 or over, from 1 October 2026
- Staff aged 18 to 64 in a clinical risk group, from 1 October 2026
- Pregnant staff, from 1 September 2026
- Carers and close contacts of people who are immunocompromised
These colleagues can use the NHS route free of charge and should be told so in your invitation. Everyone else would otherwise need to pay privately, which is why take-up is often low without a workplace offer.
How a school clinic works with HYL
- Choose the slot. Before registration, lunchtime, after school or an INSET day.
- Share the invitation. We send a ready-to-use staff FAQ and booking link. Colleagues complete their own consent form, and the school doesn’t handle medical information.
- Clinic day. A GPhC-registered pharmacist vaccinates in a quiet room such as the medical room, a meeting room or the library. Each appointment takes around five minutes, with anaphylaxis equipment on site.
- Reporting. Within 48 hours the school or trust receives aggregate uptake numbers for its records.
Working alongside the children’s programme
The NHS school-aged immunisation team visits separately to give pupils the nasal spray. The two sessions are independent, and a staff clinic can be booked on any day that suits you. UKHSA’s guidance for schools confirms that no child or staff member needs to be excluded from school during or after the children’s vaccination sessions.
Multi-academy trusts and groups of schools
Trusts can book clinics across several schools with a single quote and one combined schedule, so every site is covered before flu starts circulating.
Schools and colleges overview · Pricing and booking · Tax treatment of staff flu jabs
Questions staff ask
Are teachers eligible for a free NHS flu vaccine?
Not because of their job. Teachers and school staff are not listed as an eligible occupational group in England’s 2026/27 national programme. Staff who are eligible for another reason, for example aged 65 or over, pregnant, in a clinical risk group, or a carer, can get a free NHS vaccine through their GP or a pharmacy.
Does the children’s nasal spray programme cover staff?
No. The school-aged programme vaccinates pupils from reception to year 11, mostly with a nasal spray. It does not include staff.
When is the best time to hold a staff clinic?
Most schools book between late September and November. Clinics can run before registration, at lunchtime, after school or on an INSET day. The vaccine usually takes up to 14 days to work, so earlier in the autumn term is better.
Can support staff, lunchtime supervisors and contractors attend?
Yes. The school decides who is invited. Many schools include teaching assistants, office, site and catering staff. Trusts can include every school in one booking.
Does the school see staff medical information?
No. Consent forms and clinical records stay with HYL Health. The school receives aggregate uptake numbers only.
Sources
- National flu immunisation programme 2026 to 2027 letter (GOV.UK)
- UKHSA: Your guide to who’s eligible for the autumn 2026 flu vaccine
- UKHSA: Flu vaccination in schools
- UKHSA: Influenza, the Green Book chapter 19
- Pebody et al. Uptake and impact of vaccinating school age children against influenza, England, 2014/15. Eurosurveillance, 2015
- NHS: Flu vaccine
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