England to pilot home children's vaccinations Jan 2026

If you care for a baby or toddler and getting to the GP keeps slipping down the list, help is on the way. From mid-January 2026, NHS health visiting teams in England will begin a year-long pilot bringing routine childhood vaccinations to families at home, the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) says. The goal is straightforward: make protection easier, not harder.

The £2 million programme focuses on families most likely to miss appointments-those not yet registered with a GP, juggling childcare, worried about vaccine side effects, or facing travel costs and language barriers. By offering jabs during routine health visits, teams can remove those hurdles and reach children who might otherwise be left unprotected.

Health visitors are specialist public health nurses who support families from pregnancy until a child turns five. They track growth and development, offer guidance on feeding and sleep, and connect you with local services. Under this pilot, they will be able to offer vaccinations alongside that trusted support so you do not need a separate trip.

Twelve pilot schemes will run across five regions-London, the Midlands, North East and Yorkshire, North West, and South West. The trial starts in mid-January 2026 and runs for a year, with an evaluation before any national roll-out from 2027. Ministers say the test is whether uptake rises safely in the communities that need it most.

This is not a replacement for your GP surgery. The government is clear that families should continue to use local practices for vaccinations where possible. The home-visit offer is a safety net for families who would otherwise miss out, closing gaps that can cluster in communities and fuel outbreaks.

Nurses taking part will receive extra training to handle worried conversations and to vaccinate safely at home. That training covers consent, cold chain and record-keeping, but it also gives staff time and tools to answer questions in plain language. Confidence matters as much as convenience.

According to the government, eligible families will be identified by the NHS using GP records, health visitor notes and local databases so teams can reach out proactively. If you prefer to ask for a visit, you can still speak to your health visitor or GP practice to discuss what works for your family.

From 2 January 2026, the NHS will introduce the MMRV vaccine, protecting against measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox in a single jab. It replaces the current MMR, adding chickenpox protection and simplifying the schedule for families. Health visitors involved in the pilot will work within the national programme as it changes.

You will also be able to keep track of vaccinations digitally. The government says the NHS App will feature My Children, a modern alternative to the paper Red Book, so you can check immunisations and early-years milestones in one place and share updates with professionals during visits.

This pilot sits within a wider push to boost vaccinations. Government figures report more than 18 million flu vaccines delivered in autumn 2025, alongside over 60,000 additional NHS staff taking up the jab compared with the previous year. A year-round ‘Stay Strong. Get Vaccinated’ campaign is also running to build confidence.

What this means for you: if getting to the GP is difficult right now, expect contact from your health visitor once your area joins the pilot. Have your child’s NHS number and immunisation history ready-either in the Red Book or in the NHS App’s My Children-so records can be updated during the visit. If you are unsure about anything, ask. Informed decisions start with clear, honest answers.

Vaccine hesitancy is often about access and trust as much as beliefs. Meeting families where they live, with time to talk and a known professional at the door, helps. As Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting has argued, tackling inequalities head-on is part of fixing the NHS; this pilot is a practical test of that promise.