Parents are being urged to bring their children forward for a flu immunisation as latest NHS data reveals that hospitalisations and intensive care admissions are rising fastest in youngsters under five.

Cases of flu, say health officials, have climbed 'quickly' in the past week indicating that the season has begun much earlier than normal - but it is rates among very young children that is causing the most concern.

The NHS has been fast preparing for a difficult flu season, because it anticipates people's natural immunity has been severely affected by two years of the pandemic and social distancing, with reports that so-called 'war rooms' are being put together to monitor admissions and control available bed space.

The hospitalisation rate for all strains of influenza was at 0.84 per 100,000 people in week 41 of 2022, compared to 0.52 per 100,000 in the previous week but the latest statistics show that hospitalisations for children aged up to the age of four have almost topped three in every 100,000.

Combined with this flu vaccination rates for preschoolers are also down so far on last year.

Currently 12.1% of two-year-olds and 12.8% of children aged three have received their nasal spray from their GP or health clinic alongside 12.4% of pregnant women who have taken up a jab.

However by this time last year, health officials had reached 17.4% of two-year-olds, 18.6% of three-year-olds and 15.7% of pregnant women.

While Covid-19 admission rates show a slight fall - to 11.75 per 100,000 population compared to 12.53 in the previous week suggesting that the rapid roll-out of the booster programme is beginning to help case rates, health officials are growing increasingly concerned about the sudden rise in flu cases among children.

Dr Mary Ramsay, Director of Public Health Programmes at the UK Health Security Agency, said:"Our latest data shows early signs of the anticipated threat we expected to face from flu this season. We’re urging parents in particular not to be caught out as rates of hospitalisations and ICU admissions are currently rising fastest in children under 5.

"This will be a concern for many parents and carers of young children, and we urge them to take up the offer of vaccination for eligible children as soon as possible.

"It’s possible that we’re already seeing the benefits from so many people taking up their COVID-19 autumn booster in England. Encouragingly, the latest data shows a small decrease in COVID-19 cases and hospitalisation rates over the past week. There’s no room for complacency though, as cases could rise again at any point and we need to be armed in readiness through vaccination of everyone who’s eligible."