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Experts say there has been a "terrifying" drop in uptake of the meningitis jab, with over a million British teenagers missing out. The MenACWY vaccine, which protects against four strains of meningitis, was introduced in 2015 and achieved a 82.5% uptake rate in the first full year of its delivery.

The jab is offered to 14 and 15-year-olds, who receive doses at school, and it is highly effective - more than 90% - at reducing the disease and creating herd immunity across the country. But new figures show the uptake rate has declined massively in recent years, just over a decade after it was ruled out, meaning more than a million teens have missed out on vital doses. The figures from the UKHSA show that the overall uptake level in 2025 was just 75%, meaning 160,000 teens are unprotected, and 1.07 million have missed out.

The vaccine, as the name suggests, covers four strains, A, C, W and Y, and has been found to massively reduce the prevalence of each one. Although it is administered solely to teens, an Oxford University study conducted in 2022 found that the jab has helped establish herd immunity across all age groups.

The UKHSA's uptake figures do not include private vaccinations, and agency specialists have said the four strains it covers are now much less prevalent.

Shamez Ladhani, a consultant epidemiologist at UKHSA, said it was still vital for young people to take up the offer, however.

She told The Times: "While the number of cases of the four strains A, C, W and Y covered by the vaccine are currently very low, it is important that young people continue to take up the offer of vaccination.

"The most recent figures show more than a quarter of year 10 pupils were unvaccinated, leaving many thousands of young people at risk."

One of the lead authors of the Oxford study, Matthew Snape, who was Professor in Paediatrics and Vaccinology at the Oxford Vaccine Group at the time, said it is especially important for teens to receive the menACWY jab as it can provide benefits across multiple age groups.

He said: "These studies report the results of throat swabs taken from over 24,000 teenagers in more than 170 secondary schools across the country, showing yet again the fantastic enthusiasm of the UK public for taking part in research.

"The results show us that by immunising teenagers with MenACWY vaccines we not only protect them directly, but also reduce the risk of all others in the community suffering from meningitis and sepsis due to these bacteria. Immunising teenagers rather than infants means we get more benefit out of each dose given."

The four strains covered by the MenACWY jab do not include meningitis B, the one believed to be behind the Kent outbreak that has killed two people and affected up to 34 people.

But Dr Nelly Ninis, a consultant general paediatrician at Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust in London, said the low uptake of the vaccine was "terrifying" nonetheless.

She told The Times: "I've seen a lot of people die of meningococcal disease. This is a disease to be feared. Many healthcare professionals will buy the vaccine for their children when they go to university."