Covid: Southampton vaccination centre opens in NHS office block

The first person to get the vaccine at the hub was 76-year-old John Sansone

A vaccination centre has opened to the public at an NHS office block in Southampton.

The hub, at the Southampton Clinical Commissioning Group's offices in Oakley Road, can give up to 1,000 jabs daily.

The venue has two vaccination pods available for use - one for health and social care staff, the second for members of the public.

The first person to get the vaccine at the hub was 76-year-old John Sansone from Southampton.

He said: "I just wanted to get it done and try and stay safe."

He added he was looking forward to "taking the wife out for a meal" once lockdown restrictions were relaxed.

People should not turn up at the hub before they have received a letter inviting them to be vaccinated

The centre will start by offering vaccinations to those aged over 75 who live in Hampshire and up to 45 minutes away from the site.

Those eligible will be sent a letter inviting them to book an appointment.

Angela Anderson, from the vaccination team, said: "We have been building up to this for the last month - all our staff have done an amazing job to get us ready, we're really delighted."

The centre, run by the Solent NHS Trust, is one of 32 new NHS vaccination centres.

The venue has two vaccination pods available for use - 500 jabs can be given in each pod daily

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