Milton Keynes City Council has announced children in local schools are to be offered free flu vaccinations through schools.
Letters will be sent to parents across the city for the vaccination ahead of the upcoming flu seasion.
The City Council has encouraged this to help protect children and vulnerable categories from the virus.
The statement encouraging sign-ups read, “Flu can be unpleasant, but for most it will clear up in a week or two. For others, it can be more severe including people over 65, pregnant women, young children, and anyone with an underlying health condition or weakened immune system.
“Vaccinating your child will help to protect them as well as more vulnerable family and friends by preventing the spread of flu.”
Children from Reception to Year 11 will be offered a free vaccination at school. For eligible pre-school children (aged two years or over on 31 August 2025, or aged six months and over who are in a clinical risk group), GPs will also be inviting parents to bring their children along in the coming weeks. Also, from 1 October, flu vaccinations for 2 and 3 year-olds will be available at community pharmacies across the city.
For most children aged two years and over, the flu immunisation will be offered as a nasal spray, although an injection is also available for those who cannot receive this version of the vaccine. For eligible under twos the vaccination is offered as an injection.
The flu injection does not contain porcine gelatin and is the best option for residents who have an intolerance or want to avoid gelatin for religious reasons.
Councillor Donna Fuller, Cabinet Member for Adults, Health, Community and Housing, said, “Children can catch and spread flu easily. Every year, thousands of children miss out on valuable time at school because they fall ill with flu. Vaccination doesn’t only protect them, but it also protects others who are vulnerable, such as babies and older people.”
Marimba Carr, Deputy Director of Public Health for Milton Keynes, added, “If your child is at a primary or secondary school then you will have the opportunity to get them vaccinated as part of the school immunisation programme. You’ll be sent a letter in the first few weeks of this school term asking for consent for your child to be vaccinated. Vaccination is safe and really is the best form of protection. We want to reduce the number of our children being admitted to hospital due to flu and encourage the uptake of the vaccine to help keep everyone well.”
MK Dons conceded a late equaliser as they drew 1-1 with Chesterfield.
Rushian Hepburn-Murphy’s goal had given the visitors a first half lead, but an 86th minute equaliser by Tom Naylor saw Chesterfield deny MK Dons three points on the road.
A draw in Derbyshire means the Dons have won just one of their last 5 outings, although in the early League Two table, they sit just one point outside the play-off positions.
Paul Warne was forced into multiple reshuffles for the match, with Kane Wilson, Jack Sanders and Scott Hogan all out with injuries and Jon Mellish suspended, although Aaron Collins was able to return to a Dons squad for the first time since the opening match of the season.
MK Dons had the game’s first major opportunity, as Callum Paterson reached Dan Crowley’s cross only for his header to drift off target.
Lewis Gordon had Chesterfield’s first major opportunity, only for the home side’s man to be denied by Craig MacGillivray.
It would be the visitors who duly broke the deadlock. Hepburn-Murphy won the ball out wide, played a one-two with Paterson, burst into the box and fired the strike home to put the Dons in front.
Chesterfield began the second half in a busy manner seeking an equaliser, with Armando Dobra firing over and former Don Kyle McFadzean missing the target.
MK Dons sub Collins fired a chance over as the Dons sought a second that would’ve quelled their anxieties.
But Chesterfield kept plugging away and the Spireites equalised in the final stages of the contest. Liam Mandeville’s corner picked out Naylor, who rose highest to head home.
Things nearly got worse for the Dons, with Will Dickson’s strike denied by MacGillivray a few moments later.
MK Dons will next be in action on Tuesday, when they host the West Ham U21s in the EFL Trophy, before they return to league action by hosting Accrington Stanley next weekend.
Northampton Town made it 3 wins in a row in League One after a 1-0 victory over Blackpool.
Cameron McGeehan’s goal in the final 10 minutes was the deciding factor for Kevin Nolan’s side, as Northampton picked up the three points in a lunchtime kick-off at Sixfields.
The result sees Northampton return from their international break with a third straight win, having previously seen off Exeter and Leyton Orient in their last two matches.
The Cobblers could’ve landed an early breakthrough when Tyrese Fornah saw a deflected strike kept out by Bailey Peacock-Farrell, with Fornah seeing another strike miss the target a few moments later.
Lee Burge kept out Danny Imray when Blackpool made a forward foray with a counter-attack, before McGeehan’s header at a corner was thwarted by Peacock-Farrell.
The first half petered out after a frantic start, but the second would see Blackpool start on the front foot, with Niall Ennis seeing a header just trickle wide of the mark.
McGeehan was denied by Peacock-Farrell but a flurry of chances were falling Blackpool’s way, with the visitors seeing Josh Bowler have a strike deflected wide before Ennis was kept out by Burge.
Burge would also keep out a long-range strike by Jordan Brown, before Northampton were able to limit Blackpool’s attempts to open the scoring as the second half wore on.
In the final minutes of the 90, Northampton then found themselves a way to open the scoring. Nesta Guinness-Walker’s pass release McGeehan, who advanced before finding the back of the net.
Substitute Ashley Fletcher missed the target with a chance to equalise for Blackpool, while Northampton sub Jack Burroughs made an important defensive block, but the home side were able to pick up the points at the end of the contest.
Northampton will be chasing a fourth straight League One next time out, when they travel to play Wycombe Wanderers.
Luton Town were beaten 3-2 at home by Plymouth Argyle despite the Devonians being reduced to ten men.
Plymouth had taken the lead through Matty Sorinola, before a Jerry Yates penalty brought the home side level.
Bradley Ibrahim put the visitors ahead for a second time in stoppage time, but a second Luton penalty after the break was scored by Nahki Wells, with Plymouth then seeing captain Joe Edwards sent off.
However, Luton were unable to find a winner and instead fell 3-2 behind when Ibrahim scored for a second time, in what ended up being the game’s decisive goal.
The result means Luton have lost home games against the two sides relegated with them from last season’s Championship in close proximity, having lost to Cardiff at Kenilworth Road last month.
Having been off last week for international call-ups, Luton had been hoping to push on after their comfortable win at Burton Albion in the last game before their weekend off.
They faced a Plymouth side who had started slower under former Watford boss Tom Cleverley, but who arrived after picking up 2 wins in their previous 3 outings.
The side who made the long trip from Devon to Bedfordshire would get the opening goal, when Sorinola met Lorent Tolaj’s cross and headed in a 15th minute opener.
Luton responded quickly, however, equalising within 5 minutes. The hosts were given a penalty after a foul by Brendan Wiredu on Lasse Nordas, and Jerry Yates scored the penalty to put the Hatters back on level terms.
The hosts could’ve taken the lead just after, with Plymouth keeper Luca Ashby-Hammond denying strikes from Zack Nelson and Millenic Alli.
But Plymouth had a danger of their own and having spurned a few half-chances, it would be Plymouth who scored the game’s third goal when they made it 2-1 in first half stoppage time.
Ibrahim was able to make the goal by himself, with the Plymouth midfielder swiping the ball off Nelson before firing past Josh Keeley.
Luton boss Matt Bloomfield made a double change at half-time and his side duly managed to grab a second equaliser, again coming from the spot. Sorinola was deemed to have fouled Gideon Kodua, and from the spot, Wells scored the Hatters’ second penalty of the day.
Less than two minutes after the second Luton equaliser, Plymouth then had Edwards sent off after the midfielder’s challenge on former Exeter man Alli was deemed worthy of instant dismissal.
With a player advantage on the field, Luton pushed for a third, with Yates missing the target from close range before Wells was denied by Ashby-Hammond.
An eventful game had a further twist when Plymouth had manager Cleverley sent off, but that incident would then be followed up by the visitors taking the lead for a third time.
Plymouth won a corner and somewhere amidst a chaotic scramble, an attempted Luton clearance struck Ibrahim and bounced into the Luton net to make it 3-2 to the visitors.
The Hatters pressed to try and make it 3-3, with Wells denied by Ashby-Hammond and the keeper denying Christ Makosso.
But despite there being ten minutes of second-half added time, Luton had no answers as they slipped to defeat in the mid-September sunshine.
Luton will be seeking to make amends next time out, when they make the trip to play Lincoln City.
The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning for strong winds in Milton Keynes and across southern England.
The warning is in place from 8pm tomorrow (14/09) through to 6pm on Monday (15/09), with the warning intended to highlight that strong and gusty winds are likely to cause some disruption to travel and interruptions to power.
Strong winds are forecast as the weather shifts in the UK, with the hot temperatures of a largely very dry summer giving way to more wet and windy conditions in recent weeks.
Conditions highlighted by the Met Office include the likelihood that there is a likelihood of some delays to road, rail, air and ferry transport, potential for conditions to affect some bus and train services, with some journeys taking longer, and a likelihood of delays for high-sided vehicles on exposed routes and bridges likely.
Some short term loss of power and other services is possible, while it’s likely that some coastal routes, sea fronts and coastal communities will be affected by spray and/or large waves.
So far, the Met Office has opted not to upgrade the cell of strong winds into a full storm, which would’ve seen any storm system named Storm Amy as per the naming convention for storms.
Forecasts from the Met Office hints that wind will build in speed on Sunday, in tandem with a period of rain, before peaking in intensity on Monday afternoon.
