England's Covid vaccine strategy will 'unravel' unless inequalities addressed, say experts

Data reveals huge disparities between vaccination take-up rates in richer and poorer areas

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England's mass vaccination strategy will unravel" unless discrepancies in uptake are tackled, experts said as data showed a 25 percentage point difference between vaccination rates in richer and poorer areas just miles apart.

A Guardian analysis found the vaccine gap was most pronounced in Southwark, south London. In Herne Hill and Dulwich Park, among the least-deprived third of areas nationally, and the borough's richest, 95% of those aged 60 or older had been vaccinated by 7 March. This fell to 70% of people in those areas of Southwark that are classed among the most deprived in England.