Dozens of schools obstruct measles vaccination teams during outbreak, endangering children
An escalating measles outbreak in North London has placed unvaccinated schoolchildren at severe risk, with health experts warning that low immunisation rates and systemic barriers to vaccination in schools have created a perfect storm for the disease to spread. As of February 19, 2026, England has recorded 130 laboratory-confirmed measles cases this year, driven by a surge in the capital. The epicentre is Enfield, where 50 cases have been confirmed, including over 60 suspected cases among pupils at seven schools and a nursery.
Hospitalisations and High Contagion
The human cost is becoming clear: a local Enfield GP surgery reported that one in five children infected in the outbreak required hospital treatment, and all those hospitalised had not been fully immunised. Measles is a highly contagious, airborne disease, capable of lingering in the air for up to two hours. It is estimated to be six times more infectious than COVID-19, with one case having the potential to generate up to 18 secondary infections. The majority of confirmed UK cases this year (77%) are in children aged 10 and under, with the outbreak mostly affecting unvaccinated children in schools and nurseries. The outbreak has spread to neighbouring Haringey, with London’s total cases standing at 88, while Birmingham accounts for a further 23.
Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has issued a direct warning to parents, urging them to get their children vaccinated and stating that “public health isn’t a culture war,” emphasising that vaccines are safe, effective, and life-saving. His intervention comes as Enfield Council, in a letter to parents, warned that unvaccinated pupils identified as close contacts of measles cases could be excluded from school for 21 days under national guidelines—a move some experts warn presents a serious challenge for working parents.
Vaccination Rates in Critical Decline
The outbreak is directly linked to dangerously low MMR vaccination coverage. In Enfield, only 64.3% of five-year-olds had received both doses in 2024-25, and in the neighbouring borough of Hackney, approximately one in three children had not received their first dose by the age of two. These figures are far below the 95% coverage target needed for herd immunity, a threshold also recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO). London’s overall MMR vaccination rate for children under five is just 71.3%.
This is part of a national decline. Routine childhood vaccination coverage has been falling for a decade, and in 2024-25, the coverage for the second MMR dose in five-year-olds in England decreased to 83.7%, its lowest level since 2009-10. The consequence was starkly official in January 2026, when the WHO announced the UK had lost its measles elimination status, a decision based on data showing 2,911 laboratory-confirmed cases in England in 2024, the highest number since 2012.
“In Hackney, [almost] one in three children has no protection,” said Dr. Ben Kasstan-Dabush, an assistant professor at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM). “So it means that, as measles is circulating anyway, there are a lot of children who are sitting ducks, waiting to get very poorly, unfortunately.”
Schools Blocking Access to Vaccination Teams
Compounding the problem is the refusal of some schools to allow NHS immunisation teams onto their premises. Research from LSHTM, published in January 2026, revealed that two years prior, 32 out of 450 schools in north east London—including areas of Hackney and Barking—”did not allow access” to these services. In at least 15 of those schools, information on children who needed vaccination was not shared with the teams.
Dr. Kasstan-Dabush, who led the research, said schools might refuse due to worries about disruption, capacity to support teams, or uncertainty over data sharing rules. “Another one is that schools might just not play ball, and often we do see that, particularly with independent faith schools,” he added, noting this creates “inequity in catch-up programmes.” The researchers alerted the Department for Education to these refusals in 2024 and called for a policy change to require schools to grant access. They received a response from the then-education minister, Gillian Keegan, but it remains unclear if any guidance was altered, as there is still no requirement for schools to allow immunisation teams in.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has warned that a large-scale measles outbreak in London could lead to between 40,000 and 160,000 infections, with hospitalisation rates of 20% to 40%. London GPs warn the situation “could get worse before it gets better.”
Vaccine Efficacy and Global Surge
Data reinforces the critical importance of vaccination. WHO data for 2025 shows that more than 1,000 unvaccinated children aged five to 15 caught measles in 2024 and 2025, compared to 183 who had only one dose and 123 who were fully vaccinated. “It illustrates how important vaccines are because more than half of those children that became ill were not vaccinated and another quarter had only received one jab,” said Professor Ian Jones, a virologist at the University of Reading. He added that while most severe cases are in the unvaccinated, he was surprised that some double-vaccinated individuals still got infected, though the severity in those cases is unknown.
The UK’s crisis mirrors a global surge. Global childhood immunisation rates stalled in 2023, leaving an estimated 2.7 million additional children un- or under-vaccinated compared to pre-pandemic levels. Measles infected an estimated 10.3 million people worldwide in 2023, with outbreaks tripling between 2021 and 2024 across 59 countries. The United States is also experiencing a significant outbreak, with 378 confirmed cases and two deaths reported by March 2025, predominantly among unvaccinated children and teenagers.
Systemic Pressures and Response
Experts point to deeper, systemic issues. Dr. Kasstan-Dabush linked declining coverage to austerity, noting the number of health visitors for under-fives had been “slashed” and Sure Start centres—key venues for health and parenting support—had been closed or scaled back. “They cannot address the challenge of declining vaccination coverage alone,” he said, calling for support across the health and social care system.
In response, catch-up vaccination campaigns are underway, and from January 2026, the NHS introduced a new routine schedule: a combined measles, mumps, rubella, and varicella (MMRV) vaccine is now offered at 12 months, with the second dose brought forward to 18 months. Some experts are urging authorities to allow pharmacies to administer routine childhood vaccinations to improve access, arguing the current reliance on GP surgeries and schools is insufficient.
Professor Paul Hunter, an epidemiologist at the University of East Anglia, drew a parallel to the Covid pandemic, noting that while school exclusions can reduce spread, they also damage education. Professor Keith Neal, emeritus professor of epidemiology at the University of Nottingham, said the 21-day exclusion rule would be a “serious issue for some parents” but stressed that measles will “spread anywhere” there are unvaccinated people until uptake improves. Misinformation about vaccine safety is also cited as a contributing factor to hesitancy.
A spokesperson for the Department for Education said: “Schools and immunisation services should be collaborating to keep children protected from serious and dangerous illnesses. We are working to improve vaccine uptake in schools, including by engaging with local leaders, providing guidance on delivery, and by making sure everyone understands the importance of vaccines.”
