Highest rates of vaccine hesitancy found in the Midlands

New data from the Office of National Statistics shows 34% of Black Britons in the East Midlands reported some hesitancy.

The data shows that, in line with trends observed across Great Britain as a whole, young adults, those of Black or Black British ethnicity, and the unemployed are generally the most hesitant towards vaccines.

Rates of hesitancy among these groups tended to be highest in London and the Midlands in April to July 2021, despite falling compared with earlier in the year.

Nearly one in six (15%) young adults (16 to 29-year-olds) in the West Midlands reported vaccine hesitancy in the latest period.

The West Midlands also had a relatively high proportion of the unemployed saying they were hesitant towards coronavirus vaccines (19%), as did London (17%).

In the East Midlands, one in three (34%) Black or Black British adults reported vaccine hesitancy.

Percentage of adults reporting vaccine hesitancy by self-reported health, English regions and Scotland, 7 January to 28 March and 28 April to 18 July 2021