A former department store will be one of 33 vaccination centres in operation from today.

The old Debenhams, in Sandgate Road, Folkestone, is the only one of these new sites in Kent.

This town centre site, now renamed Folca, will increase the number of vaccinations it delivers in the weeks ahead and will operate from 8am until 8pm, seven days a week.

Those who get jabs are warned to keep socially distancing as it is not known how long they take to have effect or if they stops transmission of Covid-19.

Folkestone and Hythe District Council had bought the building last May, rebranding it Folca, and offered it to NHS England in December for vaccinations.

Three vaccine sites already exist in the district - at Lydd Airport, the Civic Centre in Folkestone and at Oaklands Health Centre in Hythe.

People aged 75 and over are being invited to book a vaccination at centres or one of more than 70 pharmacy services now operating across the country.

If they cannot or do not want to travel to a centre they can wait to be jabbed by a local GP service or hospital hub.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “I am grateful to all the NHS staff, volunteers and our armed forces for their continued tireless work to offer lifesaving vaccines to the most vulnerable people in our society.

“I urge every eligible person to book your jab when you get invited. By opening up more vaccination sites we are making it easier for people to get their vaccine.

“Vaccines are the most effective way to protect yourself but a jab doesn’t mean you can drop your guard. It takes time to develop protection and we do not yet know if it stops transmission.

" For now everyone must continue to play their vital role in this fight by staying at home to save lives.”

NHS staff are working to vaccinate priority groups in line with the guidance from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.

That was restricted to those aged 80 along with care home residents and staff.

But now the government has opened inoculations to all those aged 70 and over and the clinically vulnerable.

Those aged 80 or over will continue to be prioritised.

The latest openings mean that vaccinations are now available from more than 1,300 NHS sites as part of the biggest immunisation drive in NHS history.

Appointments are staggered to allow for social distancing and people are urged not to turn up early to avoid queues.

Nobody needs to contact the NHS, as people will be invited when it is their turn. People cannot get vaccinated by just turning up.

Those like care home residents who are unable to travel to vaccine centres, hospitals or GP-led sites are already being jabbed at home.

Maggie Keenan became the first person in the world to be protected against coronavirus outside of a clinical trial.

She received the Pfizer vaccine at Coventry Hospital on December 8.

The NHS was also the first health system to deliver the new Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine when Brian Pinker, 82, was jabbed on January 4.

Research carried out in the NHS also identified the world’s first treatment for COVID, the steroid Dexamethasone.

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