Vaccines your child should have before starting school
Once your child is of school age, they should have received a range of vaccinations to protect them against serious and potentially deadly diseases.
It's important that you check that your child is up to date with their baby and pre-school vaccinations.
Check the
baby, pre-school and childhood vaccination schedule.
If you are unsure if your child is up-to-date with their vaccinations, or you want them to have vaccinations they previously missed out on, contact the Immunisation team.
Providing consent for vaccination
Parental responsibility is about making decisions which affect a child's welfare. A person with parental responsibility for a child will have certain:
- rights
- powers and authority
- duties
- responsibilities
What parental responsibility covers
Factors of parental responsibility include:
- where the child should live
- the child's education
- applying for a passport
- significant movement of the child such as:
- leaving the country for a holiday
- leaving the jurisdiction (emigrating)
- the child's name (including changes to name by Deed Poll)
- protecting the child
- the child's religious upbringing
- consent to the child's medical treatment
- consent to freeing the child for adoption
- looking after the child's property (eg inheritance)
- the child's burial or cremation
Changes to parental responsibility
The Children and Civil Status Law came into force on 24 November 2025. It modernised Family Law by allowing groups of parents to gain parental responsibility for their children more easily, including:
- same-sex female parents
- mixed-sex parents who use fertility treatments with donor sperm
- parents having children through surrogacy, including single parents, mixed-sex parents, and same-sex male parents
- stepparents
- parents in a civil partnership
Find more information around the law changes on Changes to the law around Children and their Civil Status.
Parental responsibility for unmarried fathers
Children registered after 2 December 2016
Unmarried Fathers have parental responsibility if they are registered on their child’s birth certificate.
Children registered before 2 December 2016
Unmarried Fathers may not gain parental responsibility through registration if they were originally registered on their child’s birth certificate before 2 December 2016.
These Fathers may have parental responsibility if:
- a parental responsibility agreement is made with the Mother
- a court order grants him parental responsibility
- they have subsequently married the child’s Mother
- they have subsequently entered into a civil partnership with the child’s Mother
More detailed information can be found on our parental responsibility page.
School age vaccination programme
The table below shows the ages your child will be offered school age vaccinations and the diseases they protect against.
The age the vaccines are offered are based on evidence that shows the most effective time to protect your child. For most pupils, these vaccinations complete the childhood course of vaccinations.
You will receive information about these vaccinations and a consent form to complete when vaccinations are due. The vaccinations are given in school by experienced school nurses who make sure nervous pupils are as comfortable as possible.
All vaccinations for school age pupils are free when the vaccines are given in school, even if you've been on the Island for less than 6 months.
If your child has recently moved to Jersey or missed any vaccinations, contact the Immunisation Team who can arrange for them to be vaccinated by the Immunisation Nurses.
School age vaccination programme
Vaccinations you should have received before leaving school
All children should be up to date with their vaccination schedule, including Year 8 and 9 vaccines as advised above, in order to have the best protection against diseases.
If a child missed their vaccinations in school, vaccinations may still be obtained free of charge at monthly catch-up clinics organised by the Immunisation Team at the Outpatients Department of Jersey General Hospital.
Vaccinations you should have received before going to University
There have been outbreaks of measles and mumps in universities, and measles is circulating in England. There has also been a surge in measles cases in the European region and beyond, with deaths in adults and children caused by measles.
Before you get to university, your university will ask you to confirm you have had 2 doses of the MMR vaccine and a MenACWY vaccine.
If you haven't had all these vaccines, contact the Immunisation Team. They will help you to get protected before you go to university.
Find out more about the MenACWY vaccine and Travel vaccinations.
Useful links to more information
Baby / pre-school vaccinations
Human Papillomavirus (HPV) on NHS website
MenACWY vaccine on NHS Choices website
Teenage booster vaccine (3 in 1) on NHS Choices website
Patient information leaflets
The following patient information leaflets give more information about the vaccines:
Fluenz patient information leaflet
Gardasil patient information leaflet
Revaxis patient information leaflet
MenQuadfi patient information leaflet
Contact us
If you have any questions about school age vaccinations or contact the Immunisation Team.
gov.je