Originally girls aged 16-18 were to be offered the vaccine in the 2009/10 school year and girls aged 15-17 were to be offered the vaccine in the 2010/11 year. Now all age groups will be covered next year.
The decision to bring the catch-up programme forward follows the publication of new uptake figures.
These show that over 70 per cent of 12- to 13-year-old girls have been received jabs since the campaign started in September. However, the DoH expects the final figure to be higher as some trusts have not yet reported their results.
The DoH said it would bring forward up to £17 million for PCTs to implement the accelerated programme.
A spokesman for the DoH said it would be up to PCTs to decide whether to involve GP practices in the catch-up campaign.
Comment below and tell us what you think
