Measles is a very serious disease that can cause problems for children, such as encephalitis (swelling of the brain), blindness, deafness, and intellectual disability. It is also dangerous to pregnant women and can cause miscarriage and stillbirth.

Measles is very contagious - if one person has it, it can spread to around 90% of unvaccinated people. This means that in a room of 10 people who have not had an MMR vaccination, 9 of them would catch it.  

The good news is that you can protect your children against measles by getting the MMR vaccine. Getting vaccinated is very important - 2 doses of the MMR vaccine provide the best protection against measles, mumps and rubella.

The MMR vaccine is a safe and effective combined vaccine. It protects against three serious illnesses:

• measles
• mumps
• rubella (German measles)

These highly infectious conditions can easily spread between unvaccinated people.

This video explains more about the MMR vaccine and why it is so important to make sure your child is protected against becoming seriously ill.

How to get your child vaccinated in Barking and Dagenham

If your child is aged 0-5 years

If you are registered with a GP Practice in Barking and Dagenham, and your child is aged 0-5 years, you can book your child to have a vaccine by visiting togetherfirst.co.uk/booking-measles at the weekend.

You can also book an appointment directly with your GP.

Children aged 4+ years

Vaccination UK, working for the NHS, is running school sessions and community clinics for MMR and Polio vaccines.

Please call Vaccination UK on 0208 0174292 to book your child in for a vaccination.

If you are not sure about your child vaccination status, please follow this link

https://forms.office.com/e/1SnnbbeeuP and you will be contacted by one of the MMR Admins from Vaccination UK

Alternatively, if you want to book an appointment for a weekend community clinic, please follow this link

https://london.schoolvaccination.uk/polio/2023/BarkingAndDagenham

Local walk-in vaccine clinics 

In February and March you can also attend a walk-in clinic to get your child’s FREE MMR vaccine. 

You don’t need an appointment or GP referral, you can just turn up on the day!