A huge queue has formed outside a health centre in Harrow, in London, which is offering jabs to people aged 18 and over.
Belmont health centre in Stanmore, Harrow, is open on Saturday to over-18s who are still waiting for their first vaccine and who live or work in Harrow.
The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is being administered all day at the walk-in clinic and people do not need to be registered with the practice to get their vaccine.
National eligibility criteria in England states that only those aged 30 and over are invited for their first jab, and it is understood that health officials want to prioritise that cohort in Harrow rather than younger age groups, PA news reports.
But the poster advertising the walk-in centre clearly states that people aged 18 and over can come along, and the majority of people waiting appeared to be in their 20s.
By mid-morning, a huge queue had formed in the area of the health centre, with the line snaking around a car park and stretching down the street.
Among them were 20-year-old students Jamie Lesser and Daniel Simmons who arrived at around 8.15am.
Lesser said it will be a relief to get the jab, telling the PA news agency: “If all plans go ahead, clubs are going to open in three weeks’ time and we both have plans to go out.”
He said he had clubbing plans for “about five days in a row” if nightclubs open, “making up for the last year and a half”.
Lesser said he found out about Saturday’s walk-in through friends in a group chat who had forwarded on information about it.
He said:
To be honest we weren’t intending to give up the whole of the Saturday. We were going to go to the gym fairly early … Thought we’d get here very early to avoid the queue, which hasn’t been very successful.
Simmons said that as soon as he saw the chance to get the jab, he thought he would “jump on it”, adding: “I want to get it as soon as possible really.”
Queueing for his jab, Chand Shah, a 25-year-old accountant, said the walk-in centre was “heavily advertised” and he thought it was a “good idea” to get the vaccine before the possible further easing of restrictions on 21 June.
Asked if he expected to get his vaccine so soon, he said: “No. I was expecting August to be honest.”
Shah added: “I think if you get the vaccine you feel safer.”
