Since the start of the covid-19 vaccination programme 250,000 people across Lanarkshire have received their first dose of the vaccine. In addition, more than 17,000 people have received their second dose.
Dr Mark Russell, Lead for the covid-19 vaccination programme in Lanarkshire, said: “We would like to thank everyone who has attended so far for their covid-19 vaccination. Our uptake has been more than 90% which is higher than any of our other vaccination programmes.
“A programme of this scale wouldn’t be possible without the hard work of NHS staff, as well as staff from North Lanarkshire Council and South Lanarkshire Council. These staff have been key in the running of our vaccination centres.”
From this week people in priority groups 8 and 9 (50 to 59 years old) will begin to receive their appointments. These letters have only just been posted, please be patient and wait for your invite. This means that we are on target to meet the national projection of everyone over the age of 50 and those aged under 50 with underlying health conditions, to be vaccinated by mid-April.
Dr Russell added: “To help us meet the national target, we have significantly increased the pace of our vaccination programme by appointing people initially to two supercentres. We understand that these plans will not be suitable for everyone, so we have kept seven local centres across Lanarkshire for people who cannot travel to the supercentres.
“More people being vaccinated quicker is the simplest and most important step we can take to help life get back to normal, faster. It would not be possible to do this without maximising our supercentres, so we’re asking for your help – if you can attend your appointment in a supercentre, please do so. This leaves the local centres for those who absolutely need it.
“We’ve listened to the concerns raised by local communities about accessing the supercentres and are putting in place additional support to help.”
We’ve worked with Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) and two dedicated shuttle buses are now running, one from Cumbernauld and one from Motherwell, to Ravenscraig. These buses are only for people attending their vaccination appointment and are free of charge.
Vac1 bus – runs every 30 minutes (on the hour and half past) from Motherwell train station to Ravenscraig. Journey takes 10 minutes.
Vac2 bus – runs every 45 minutes from Cumbernauld Town Centre, South to Ravenscraig. Journey takes 40 minutes.
Other existing bus routes have been amended to visit Ravenscraig. A journey planner and full timetables are available at www.travelinescotland.com/lts/#/travelInfo and www.spt.co.uk/bus/timetables/ or by calling the SPT helpline on 0141 465 1878 (open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week). SPT is the first point of contact for all transport enquiries. There are a number of travel options and trained staff will find the most appropriate way for everyone to attend a vaccination appointment.
Travelling for your vaccination is an essential journey and buses have all safety measures in place.
Local centres will be located at:
- Sir Matt Busby Sports Complex, Bellshill
- Time Capsule, Coatbridge
- Muirfield Community Centre, Cumbernauld
- Fernhill Community Centre, Rutherglen
- Whitehill Neighbourhood Centre, Hamilton
- St Nicholas Church Hall, Lanark
- Stonehouse Lifestyles, Stonehouse
