Health Secretary Wes Streeting has told the House of Commons that four cases of meningitis B have been confirmed in Canterbury and East Kent, with a further 11 under investigation, as the Government announced an emergency vaccination programme for University of Kent students.
Addressing MPs on Tuesday, Streeting described the situation as an “unprecedented outbreak” that was “rapidly developing,” and confirmed that both deaths associated with the cluster had now been formally linked to the confirmed cases. He said the majority of cases traced back to the Club Chemistry nightclub in Canterbury on the evenings of 5th, 6th and 7th March and their associated social networks. The venue has since closed voluntarily.
Setting out the timeline of the official response, Streeting told the House that UKHSA was first notified of a case on Friday 13th March. Contact tracing of the patient’s close contacts began immediately, with prophylactic antibiotics offered as a matter of urgency. By Saturday, the University of Kent had been contacted to provide support and guidance, and French authorities had separately alerted UKHSA to a second confirmed case in a person who had attended the university.
The situation escalated on Saturday evening when hospitals reported a number of severely unwell young adults presenting with symptoms consistent with meningococcal disease. A full-scale UKHSA response was activated at 10am on Sunday. By 5pm that day, antibiotics had been made available in the two university halls of residence where cases had been identified, and a public health alert was issued at 6pm. A total of 700 doses of preventative antibiotics have so far been administered.
Two cases involving sixth-form students were also identified — one of whom has died. UKHSA contacted head teachers at both schools on Monday morning and issued letters to parents the same day.
Streeting confirmed that four treatment centres are currently open in Canterbury, with 11,000 doses of antibiotics available on site and no appointment necessary. He urged anyone who attended Club Chemistry on the relevant dates, or who believes they had close contact with a confirmed or suspected case, to attend one of the centres. “A single course of antibiotics is highly effective in preventing the contraction and spread of this disease in 90 per cent of cases,” he said.
On the question of vaccination, Streeting confirmed the Government would begin a targeted MenB vaccination programme for students living in university halls of residence in Canterbury within days. He also announced he would be asking the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to re-examine eligibility for meningitis vaccines more broadly in light of the outbreak, though he stressed any decision would follow independent clinical advice.
UKHSA will publish updated case figures publicly each day at 9:30am. Streeting said he would continue to update the House as the situation develops.
