TRUST (Targeted Responses to Under-vaccination using Stakeholders Tactics)

Vaccination is an effective public health tool to protect communities from serious infectious diseases. Yet, some communities have lower vaccination rates than others, and recently, infant vaccination rates have been declining. This has resulted in a surge in cases of measles in children under the age of 10 and an outbreak of whooping cough in 2024. To try to improve uptake, the UK infant vaccination programme is changing from January 2026. The second MMR vaccine dose will now be given at 18 months instead of 36 months, the chickenpox (varicella) vaccine will be added, and the single meningitis-C vaccination will be removed.
This study will investigate how these changes affect vaccine uptake. We will focus on which communities benefit and who may still remain unvaccinated. This work is a national partnership between researchers in Wales, Scotland, London, Bradford, and Birmingham. We will work with parents and local service providers to understand and address the reasons for lower vaccination rates.
Over three years, this study will examine vaccine uptake before and after the changes, work with families to understand the reasons behind our findings, and develop practical, community-led recommendations to improve vaccination uptake.
This project combines large-scale data analysis with local community engagement to ensure our recommendations are based on strong evidence and the current experience of families. The work will bring together researchers, healthcare providers, and communities to improve vaccine uptake and ensure equal access for all.