Covid vaccination centre to open at Asda in Watford

In a major boost to Watford's vaccination programme, Asda is transforming a section of its George clothing department of its store in the town into a vaccination centre for the NHS, capable of delivering 3,500 vaccines a week.

Asda is currently working to repurpose the space ready for its pharmacy colleagues to start providing vaccines to patients identified by the NHS from the week beginning February 1.

It is only of two Asda’s in the country where an in-store vaccination service has been confirmed, with a smaller centre in Birmingham opening today.

A 78-year-old woman became the first person to be vaccination in a supermarket when they received the Pfizer/BioNTech injection at the superstore in the West Midlands this morning from in-store pharmacy staff.

The vaccination centre pictured earlier this week at Asda in Watford. Credit: Vicki Smith

Faisal Tuddy, Asda superintendent pharmacist, said: "We are incredibly proud to be the first supermarket pharmacy to administer the vaccine and to play our part in helping the NHS roll outs its vaccination programme.

"Many of the people who will attend the store today (in Birmingham) have been shielding at home for months and we hope receiving the vaccine is the first step towards a return to normality for them.

"We are also stepping up our support for the NHS by opening a second in-store vaccination centre next week (in Watford) and have offered all of our 254 in-store pharmacies across the UK, along with our logistics network, to help with the roll out."

The vaccination centre at Asda Watford. Credit: Vicki Smith

The centre in Watford is set to be open seven days a week from 8am to 8pm.

As has been the case for many weeks now, patients will be contacted by the NHS by letter inviting them to book a Covid vaccination at Asda or any of the other vaccination centres in the area.

People cannot turn up to vaccination centres without an appointment.

Only people in the top priority groups, agreed by the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, are being offered vaccination appointments in our area at this time.

Asda’s vaccination centre will be in addition to various GP surgeries across the Watford area which have been administering vaccines, as well as those available at Watford Football Club via the hospital, and the mass vaccination centre in Stevenage.

There are also community pharamacies up-and-running in Hertfordshire offering Covid jabs.