Overview

• UKHSA reports a baby under one died between March and June after contracting pertussis, with the mother unvaccinated.
• Surveillance identified 502 cases from January to June 2025, including eight infections in babies under three months.
• Childhood vaccine uptake is at a 15-year low, leaving nearly one in five children starting school without full protection and below the WHO 95% target.
• Maternal pertussis vaccination rose back to about 72–73% from 59% last year but remains below the 76% peak recorded in 2016.
• Since the pregnancy programme began in 2012, 33 infants have died from confirmed whooping cough, 27 with mothers who were not vaccinated, while the NHS plans an MMRV rollout adding chickenpox from January 2026.