City Hall Salisbury to become large scale vaccine centre
It will open to invited patients next week
Last updated 22nd Jan 2021
Becoming the first mass centre in Wiltshire, City Hall Salisbury is to open as a Covid-19 vaccination hub next week.
It's hoped the new site will be able to provide the life-saving vaccine on a large scale, with up to 96 people able to be vaccinated in an hour.
The venue has been shut since March due to the pandemic and in October it was announced it would remain closed for the foreseeable future.
People over the age of 80, and living within a 45-minute drive of City Hall, will be written to in the coming days with details of how to book an appointment.
It will be open seven days a week, with a similar centre opening at Bath Racecourse.
Gill May, Director of Nursing and Quality, Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire CCG, said:
"I’m delighted to announce the opening of these two largescale vaccination centres, which are the first of their kind in our region.
Getting these two venues up and running with the help of our community and voluntary sector partners, such as St John’s Ambulance and 3SG, will allow us to provide even more opportunities for people to get vaccinated in addition to what is already being offered at our GP-led sites.
We know that many people in line for the vaccine are still very much mobile, and also incredibly eager to be vaccinated, and we hope these new venues will help us to carry out more vaccinations and ultimately protect more families from the heartbreak that is so often associated with coronavirus."
People are asked not to turn up at the venues without an appointment as the vaccination staff will be unable to give the jab to any person without a pre-arranged slot.
Cllr Philip Whitehead, Leader of Wiltshire Council, said:
"We are proud to play our part in this monumental effort to roll out the vaccine as quickly and safely as possible.
A vaccine is the light at the end of the tunnel and thanks to the efforts of hugely talented scientific research teams, we find ourselves in this much more hopeful position. “However, the rollout of the vaccine is a huge logistical undertaking involving many partners and organisations across the country and will take some time.
In the meantime everyone must keep following the rules to keep each other as safe as possible."
It follows on from the South Wiltshire vaccine centres that have opened in Wilton, Tidworth, Salisbury Cathedral and Larkhill.
For more information about the rollout across the county, visit the CCG's website.