Yes. The NHS will not offer any COVID-19 vaccinations to the public until experts have signed off that it is safe to do so.  The MHRA, the official UK regulator, have said this vaccine is very safe and highly effective, and we have full confidence in their expert judgement and processes.

As with any medicine, vaccines are highly regulated products. There are checks at every stage in the development and manufacturing process, and continued monitoring once it has been authorised and is being used in the wider population.

Recently there have been reports of a very rare condition involving blood clots and unusual bleeding after vaccination. This is being carefully reviewed but the risk factors for this condition are not yet clear. For more information, see the patient leaflet here.

The MHRA have said these vaccines are highly effective, but to get full protection people need to come back for the second dose – this is really important.

When you are given your appointment date for your second dose, it is important that you attend.  Full protection kicks in around a week or two after the second dose.

To ensure as many people are vaccinated as quickly as possible, the Department for Health and Social Care now advise that the second dose of both the Oxford-AstraZeneca and the Pfizer-BioNtech vaccine should be scheduled up to 12 weeks apart.

Please remember that even after both first and second doses of the vaccine, it is still important to follow the guidance in your local area. To protect yourself, your family, friends and the NHS you still need to:

• continue to social distance
• wear a face mask
• wash your hands carefully and frequently
• follow the current guidance at gov.uk/coronavirus

Like all medicines, vaccines can cause side effects. Most of these are mild and short-term, and not everyone gets them. Even if you do have symptoms after the first dose, you still need to have the second dose. You may not be protected until at least seven days after your second dose of the vaccine.

Very common side effects include:

• Having a painful, heavy feeling and tenderness in the arm where you had your injection. This tends to be worst around 1–2 days after the vaccine
• Feeling tired
• Headache
• General aches or mild flu like symptoms

For further information on the side effects of the AstraZeneca / Oxford vaccine, view the patient leaflet here.

As with all vaccines, appropriate treatment and care will be available in case of a rare anaphylactic event following administration.

Tell one of the NHS staff members before you are vaccinated if you’ve ever had a serious allergic reaction (anaphylaxis). You should not have the vaccine if you’ve ever had a serious allergic reaction to:

• a previous vaccine
• a previous dose of the same COVID-19 vaccine
• some medicines, household products or cosmetics

Serious allergic reactions are rare. If you do have a reaction to the vaccine, it usually happens in minutes. Please be assured, the staff giving the vaccine are trained to deal with allergic reactions and treat them immediately. They staff can also discuss any previous reactions with you before you are vaccinated.

Thousands of people across the country have received their COVID-19 vaccination and reports of serious side effects, such as allergic reactions, have been very rare. No long-term complications have been reported. Like all medicines, vaccines can cause side effects. Most of these are mild and short-term, and not everyone gets them, for more information click here. 

Please note: No vaccine will be approved or tested in a phase 3 clinical trial if it hasn’t first passed other safety checks. At every stage of a vaccine’s development, safety is always being checked and side effects monitored.

There’s no evidence to suggest that COVID-19 vaccines will affect fertility. The Royal College of Obstetricians & Gynaecologists and the Royal College of Midwives issued a press release responding to misinformation around COVID-19 vaccine and fertility. Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists have also published information and advice for pregnant women about the COVID-19 vaccine

In addition to the top 9 priority groups, we have now vaccinated a large number of our 40 to 49 year olds in Rotherham. We don’t want to miss anyone and if you are aged 40 or over and have not yet received your first vaccination appointment, please email our booking team on roccg.vaccinebooking@nhs.net

Please do not turn up at any vaccination site unless you have an appointment. All vaccination sites will be ensuring social distancing policies are in place for patient and staff safety, therefore we ask that you arrive no earlier than 10 minutes prior to your appointment to avoid queues forming.

Our community health teams have now vaccinated all patients registered as housebound with their first dose of the covid-19 vaccine. 

We do not have a separate standby list for contacting patients at short notice. We would continue to working through the priority list to fill all appointments to ensure our most vulnerable patients are vaccinated as soon as possible.

People who are suffering from a fever-type illness should postpone having the vaccine until they have recovered.

Please read our guide to COVID-19 vaccination leaflet for women of childbearing age, those currently pregnant or breastfeeding.

You can choose not to have the vaccine, it is your choice. The NHS however is encouraging everyone who can to have it. The more people who have the vaccine, the harder it will be for the virus to spread.

The phase three study of the Pfizer BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine demonstrated a vaccine efficacy of 95%, with consistent efficacy across age, gender and ethnicity. Overall, among the participants who received the COVID-19 vaccine 82.1% were White, 9.6% were Black or African American, 26.1% were Hispanic/Latino, 4.3% were Asian and 0.7% were Native American/Alaskan.

The two approved COVID-19 vaccines also do not contain any animal products or egg.

Read about the approved Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine for COVID-19 by MHRA on GOV.UK
Read about the approved Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine for COVID-19 by MHRA on GOV.UK

The approved COVID-19 vaccines do not contain any animal products or egg.

There is clear evidence that certain Black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) groups have higher rates of infection, and higher rates of serious disease and mortality. The reasons are multiple and complex.  There is no strong evidence that ethnicity by itself (or genetics) is the sole explanation for observed differences in rates of severe illness and deaths. What is clear is that certain health conditions are associated with increased risk of serious disease, and these health conditions are often overrepresented in certain Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups.  

Prioritisation of people with underlying health conditions will also provide for greater vaccination of BAME communities who are disproportionately affected by such health conditions. Tailored local implementation to promote good vaccine coverage in Black, Asian and minority ethnic groups will be the most important factor within a vaccine programme in reducing health inequalities in these groups. The NHS will provide advice and information at every possible opportunity, including working closely with BAME communities, to support those receiving a vaccine and to anyone who has questions about the vaccination process.

Taking the Covid-19 vaccines currently licensed in the UK does not invalidate the fast. Individuals should not delay their Covid vaccinations on the account of Ramadan. Please click here for more information.

According to the JCVI and Public Health England Green Book, adult carers are “those who are eligible for a carer’s allowance, or those who are the sole or primary carer of an elderly or disabled person who is at increased risk of COVID-19 mortality and therefore clinically vulnerable”.

Carers are in Cohort 6 and should have now been invited for their first vaccination. We are working to the national guidance outlined in the this standard operating procedure to vaccinate all Rotherham carers.

We are working to the national guidance outlined in the this standard operating procedure to vaccinate all Rotherham carers.

Residents registered with a Rotherham GP practice were invited to have their vaccinations by either telephone call from the NHS Rotherham booking centre, GP text message link to Online Booking System or receiving a letter from the National Booking System.  For more information on the ‘first vaccine dose’ booking options click here 

People who are unwell, currently self-isolating or experiencing COVID-19 symptoms and / or  tested positive for COVID-19 should not receive the COVID-19 vaccine until they have recovered. Your vaccination appointment must be 28 days after recovering from COVID-19.

Please remember, you should not book or attend a vaccine appointment if you are self-isolating, waiting for a COVID-19 test or unsure if you are fit and well, it is safer to wait until you have recovered.

Yes, they should get vaccinated. There is no evidence of any safety concerns from vaccinating individuals with a past history of COVID-19 infection, or with detectable COVID-19 antibody, so people who have had COVID-19 disease (whether confirmed or suspected) can still receive the COVID-19 vaccine when it is their time to do so.

How long it takes to recover from coronavirus is different for everybody. For more information about ‘long COVID’ and symptoms click here.

Once you arrive at your vaccination service site you will need to check in at reception. You will receive your vaccination which is given as an injection into your upper arm. You may be asked to wait up to 15 minutes for an observation period. You will be given a vaccination card at your appointment, keep your card safe.

The vaccine itself is very quick and will only take a few minutes. After your vaccination you may be asked to stay for a 15 minute observation period to be monitored.

Yes. You may bring a carer with you to your appointment if you need support. Additionally, each vaccination site has marshals on hand to assist you so please do let them know if you require support.

Yes. There are wheelchairs available at all our vaccination sites and these are cleaned and sanitised after each use before being used for someone else. Additionally, each vaccination site has marshals on hand to assist you so please do let them know if you require support.

Yes, each vaccination site has volunteers and marshals on hand to assist you so please do let them know if you require support. Alternately you may bring a carer with you.

Rotherham Community Transport are providing transport for people who have a COVID vaccination appointment but have no means of getting there, anyone who needs transport please call 01709 517100 once you have your appointment time. For more details about Rotherham Community Transport go to: www.door2door.org.uk/

Both your first and second dose of the vaccine will be registered on your digital medical record which your GP can see. You may be able to access this if you have registered to use the Rotherham Health App 

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has issued advice that states if you’ve already received one dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, you should still get your second dose. Most blood clot reactions have happened after the first dose vaccination.

Find out more

Rotherham patients who received their first vaccination dose at a Rotherham vaccination centre will receive a letter from the NHS Rotherham Booking Centre notifying them of a second dose appointment date, time and venue (this will be the same vaccination centre where you had your first dose). We are aiming for patients to receive their notification letter at least 10 days prior to their appointment.

Rotherham patients will receive a second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine 11 – 12 weeks after receiving their first dose. However we do not want to miss anybody, therefore if we haven’t contacted you 12 weeks after your ‘first dose’ please email our booking team on roccg.secondappointment@nhs.net

Please note: It is important that all patients attend their allocated second vaccination appointment as both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are required to ensure the best protection.

Patients who received their first vaccination dose at Sheffield Arena / a large scale vaccination centre will have already received their second dose appointment date and time and the location which will be at the same vaccination centre where you received your first dose.

Please ensure you attend this appointment. It is important that all patients attend their allocated second vaccination appointment as both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine are required to ensure the best protection.

If you received your first vaccination dose at the Hospital hub, you will receive a unique booking link via text, when it is your turn, to book in for your second dose appointment at approximately 11 – 12 weeks after your first dose. Your second dose will be at the same location where you had your first.

If  you received your first vaccination dose at a local GP-led vaccination site, the NHS Rotherham Booking Centre will contact you by either letter, text or telephone call approximately 11 – 12 weeks after you received your first dose with an appointment for your second dose. Your second dose will be at the same location where you had your first.

You will receive your second dose 11 – 12 weeks after receiving your first dose. If you are at 12 weeks after your first vaccination and have not received your appointment for second dose, please contact us on roccg.secondappointment@nhs.net

Yes, you will receive the same vaccine as your first dose. The vaccine you received at your first appointment will be noted on your medical records and also on the vaccination card you were given at your first appointment.

It is important to receive your second vaccination dose as you need to have both doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to ensure the best protection.

If you are unable to attend your appointment due to feeling unwell, you are self-isolating, have symptoms or tested positive for COVID-19 within 28 days prior to your appointment date, please contact us on the details included in your appointment letter. It is safer to wait until you have recovered, we will advise on the next steps to take to ensure you can receive your second dose of vaccine in a timely manner.

Due to the high patient numbers that we are processing across our vaccination sites, we are not in a position to offer a choice to patients with regard to the time or date for your second vaccination.

If you are unable to attend your appointment, are feeling unwell, you are self-isolating, have symptoms or tested positive for COVID-19 within 28 days prior to your appointment date, please contact us on the details included in your appointment letter. It is safer to wait until you have recovered, we will advise on the next steps to take to ensure you can receive your second dose of vaccine in a timely manner.

Yes, please bring along your vaccination card and appointment letter to support quick registration upon arrival.

If you have misplaced these please do not worry, turn up for your appointment as allocated, you will still be able to receive your second dose of the vaccine at your allocated appointment time.