Response to the meningitis cases in Canterbury

We are still not aware of any cases at UCA Canterbury and our campus in Kent remains open in line with UKHSA guidance.   

The nature of this strain of meningitis means that it is transmitted differently from other public health issues many people are familiar with, such as coronavirus. The meningococcal disease does not spread easily, so the risk of transmission for most people is very low and it is unlikely to be transmitted in a classroom environment. 

Our Canterbury campus will be open next week for teaching (w/c 23 March); however, we will continue with the precautionary measure of cancelling events planned there next week. 

The targeted antibiotics and vaccination programme introduced in direct response to the outbreak has been widened and because of our continued liaison with all the appropriate governing bodies the following UCA staff and students are eligible for both the preventative antibiotics and the vaccine:  

• Anyone who attended Club Chemistry from 5 March, now to 15 March 
• Anyone who lives in shared accommodation on the University of Kent campus  
• Anyone who has been in close contact with a person who has been diagnosed with meningococcal disease  

For where to receive the above, please refer to this NHS webpage, which is being updated regularly with clinic details. We advise attending clinics early. While they are operating throughout the day, if you are eligible, please attend before noon – this allows clinic staff to manage the queues and make sure they can vaccinate as many people as possible safely. 

We encourage everyone eligible to take the preventative antibiotics and get the vaccine. 

We will continue to update here and to students and staff via email and the respective Portals. We have also been advised that the NHS Kent and Medway’s Facebook page is a useful source of timely updates.