Vulnerable young people refused Covid jab despite doctors recommending vaccine

The news that thousands of people with severe learning disabilities will now get priority for the Covid vaccine has come as huge relief for many families. But that is not the case for all the 61,000 young people who are on the shielding list in the UK, as the jab isn’t approved for under 16s – except in exceptional circumstances for those who tend to be in specialist care homes.

We have been speaking to one desperate family whose 13-year-old daughter has Down’s syndrome – and whose doctors say she should be given the vaccine, but that they can’t give it to her under the current regime.