The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) are the independent experts who advise the Government on which vaccines the United Kingdom should use and provide advice on prioritisation at a population level. For the first phase, the JCVI has advised that the vaccine be given to care home residents and staff, as well as frontline health and social care workers, then to the rest of the population in order of age and clinical risk factors. Included in this are those with underlying health conditions, which put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have published a Standard Operating Procedure on the vaccination of frontline health and social care workers.

This sets out the roles and services where individuals are providing frontline social care support may be considered eligible within this cohort. This could include services provided by organisations commissioned by local government and the National Health Service, such as homelessness services and support.

Prioritisation decisions for the next phase are subject to surveillance and monitoring data and information from phase one, as well as further input from independent scientific experts such as the JCVI. Phase two may include further reduction in hospitalisation and targeted vaccination of those at high risk of exposure and/or those delivering key public services.