British students urged to get meningitis jab to avoid serious illness

Health agency reports about one in eight teenagers old enough to start college have missed out on free MenACWY vaccination

Students heading to university should make sure they are vaccinated against four potentially deadly types of meningitis, health experts warned after figures showed many young people remained unprotected.

The vaccination, MenACWY, protects against four groups of meningococcal bacteria, which naturally live at the back of the throat in about one in 10 people without making them unwell.