The NHS is going to offer free chickenpox vaccinations to young children in England. The jab will save parents £150 because it is currently charged for at private clinics and pharmacies.

It will be offered at GP practices from January 2026, and is expected to offer protection to around 500,000 children every year. The chickenpox vaccine – also known as the varicella jab – will form part of a new combined MMRV (measles, mumps, rubella and varicella) vaccine on the childhood vaccination programme.

It is hoped it will not only protect children from severe complications from the virus, but also prevent parents taking time off work to look after their children when they become infected. The main symptom is an itchy, spotty rash over the body, but before this appears children may have a

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