The majority of adults who have not yet received a Covid-19 vaccination were worried about the speed at which the vaccine was developed, according to a new Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey.
The Covid-19 Vaccine Opinions Study, released on March 16, found there were a number of trust and health related reasons for not receiving the vaccine, including distrusting government advice.
Among adults who had received the vaccine, 61 per cent were motivated to do so by the protection the vaccine offered from Covid-19.
Farren Morgan, a British soldier who has received the vaccine, said: “My wife and I are both triple jabbed. It’s very important for both of us to be vaccinated due to our jobs.
“I think this virus will be with us for a long time to come so it’s pertinent that we follow public heath guidelines. We both contracted the virus in 2020 at Christmas and it wasn’t pleasant.”
Barriers to Vaccination
The survey found that 55 per cent of adults who have not received a Covid-19 vaccine were concerned with the speed at which the vaccine was developed.
An anonymous respondent said there was “not enough information about the long term efficacy of the vaccines”.
Another free-text respondent, a female in the 18-29 age range, said: “I believe this country has had a lot of vaccines. I would get it eventually, but would rather see other countries getting equal access to the vaccine before getting it myself.”
A distrust of government advice and a feeling that there is not yet enough information about what is in the vaccine were other frequent concerns.
Motivations for vaccination
The most common reason for being vaccinated was to get protected against the virus.
Protecting others from Covid-19 (57 per cent), protecting the National Health Service (31 per cent), and discussions with friends and family (31 per cent) were also common motivations for receiving the vaccine.
Kingston has five vaccination centres offering walk-in Covid-19 vaccinations.
For the latest information on the walk-in centres, locations and times, visit the Kingston Council website.
