Do not make Covid-19 vaccination a requirement to physically attend university

I want the Government to rule out making vaccination a condition for students to attend lectures, or reside in halls of residence. This would amount to discrimination.

The Government should acknowledge that requiring vaccination as a condition of study is discriminatory against students who have not been vaccinated, for whatever reason, and to implement this could be harmful to their education and puts them at a disadvantage.

Vaccination is not currently a requirement for entry onto university campuses. There are no plans to require the use of vaccine certification for access to learning or halls of residence. The Government has continued to encourage all Universities in promoting take up of the vaccine and to continue to conduct risk assessments for their particular circumstances.

Vaccinations are important in helping to keep higher education settings safe, and we strongly encourage all students to take up the offer of both vaccine doses. We are making it as easy as possible for young people to access and find information about the vaccine through a targeted advertising campaign, the Government’s ‘Grab a Jab’ campaign, initiatives like ‘Vaccine Information Street Teams’ and pop-up sites in popular locations. The Government has recently launched a multimedia advertising campaign targeting 18-34 year olds in England which will run to early September.

The Government is working closely with universities to support student vaccine uptake. This has included providing useful information resources, such as NHS England’s frequently asked questions (FAQs) on vaccines for students: https://www.england.nhs.uk/coronavirus/wp-content/uploads/sites/52/2021/06/C1317-COVID-19-vaccination-FAQs-students-in-Higher-Education-Institutions-.pdf. We are also encouraging universities to consider how they can work with local health teams to set up ‘pop up’ temporary clinics at locations convenient for students to access. Many universities have taken creative approaches to encouraging uptake. Sussex University, for example, has created a competition for the fully vaccinated or exempt with the opportunity to win money.

As of 12th August, 69.12% of 18-24 year olds had had their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine and 24.87% had had their second. The Government is content that the measures being taken are sufficient to maximise student uptake of the vaccine and has no plans to introduce mandatory certification to access learning or accommodation.

Department for Education