From mid‑January 2026, health visitors will start giving childhood vaccinations in family homes across the North East & Yorkshire and the North West. The Department of Health and Social Care has set aside £2 million for 12 pilot schemes running for a year, with results informing a potential national rollout from 2027.

The pilots are aimed at families who struggle to get to surgeries because of travel costs, childcare, language barriers, lack of GP registration or vaccine worries. Jabs will be offered during routine health visiting appointments and the programme is framed as a safety net, not a substitute for GP services.

This matters in the North, where uptake has slipped below the World Health Organization’s 95% goal. In 2024–25, only 83.7% of five‑year‑olds in England had received both MMR doses, the lowest in a decade and a half.

The risks are not theoretical. Last summer a child with measles died at Alder Hey in Liverpool, where double‑dose MMR coverage by age five has been reported at around 73%. That tragedy sharpened calls for practical access to vaccinations close to home.

Announcing the move, Health Secretary Wes Streeting said: “Every parent deserves the chance to protect their child from preventable diseases.” Health visitors on the pilot will receive extra training for difficult conversations and safe administration, with families identified through GP and local records.

Local practitioners say convenience is critical. As Liverpool’s public health director Matt Ashton put it last year: “People are time‑poor and often working really hard just to put food on the table.” Taking vaccines to the doorstep is designed to meet families where life actually happens.

Today, 2 January 2026, the NHS also begins offering the new combined MMRV vaccine, adding chickenpox protection and simplifying appointments. Two routine doses are planned for most children at 12 and 18 months, with tailored catch‑up for older cohorts. Families will hear from their GP when they’re due.

Yorkshire is among the confirmed pilot areas, alongside other sites in the North and Midlands, with schemes rolling out from mid‑January. Local teams say they’ll use existing trusted relationships to reach families who’ve missed appointments.

The pilot lands alongside a wider push to make child health admin simpler. The NHS App is being upgraded with a ‘My Children’ section - a digital take on the Red Book - so parents can track growth, appointments and vaccinations in one place. A family‑access feature has also been piloted to let parents switch profiles easily.

In the North West, NHS teams have already experimented with bringing vaccinations closer to home via mobile and community clinics - a sign that flexible access boosts uptake. The home‑visiting pilot takes that convenience a step further for under‑fives.

Ministers say success will be judged over 12 months, with an eye on narrowing inequalities and moving closer to the WHO’s 95% coverage benchmark. The government’s “Stay Strong. Get Vaccinated” messaging will continue through the year to support take‑up.

For parents, the advice is straightforward: GP surgeries remain the first port of call for childhood jabs. If your family is eligible for a home visit under the pilot, your health visitor or local NHS team will be in touch; details on the new MMRV schedule are available via NHS guidance.