2026/27 season Bookings open now, jabs from 1 October
Flu and COVID vaccine in Woking
Private flu jabs and this season's updated COVID vaccine, given together in one ten-minute visit on Woking High Street. NHS-eligible? We can vaccinate you too, often sooner than your GP.
This year's NHS COVID list is 75+, care home residents and the immunosuppressed only. Everyone else can have the updated vaccine privately, from age 12.
Private COVID vaccineEligibility checker
Which vaccine, and is it free?
Tap what applies to you. This is a guide to the 2026/27 NHS criteria; we confirm at your appointment.
Your likely position
You are outside this year's NHS groups for both. Both are available privately, together, from 1 October.
Book a ConsultationFull NHS criteria are on nhs.uk. Immunosuppression has a specific definition for COVID; ask us if you are unsure.
Why bother this year
Two viruses, one visit
Last winter flu arrived early and hard, driven by the H3N2 subclade K strain the papers called super flu, and around 16,000 people in England were admitted to hospital with COVID between October and January. Neither is going anywhere.
The NHS programme protects the people most likely to end up in hospital. It does not cover the people who keep offices, schools and homes running, and flu does not check your eligibility before it puts you in bed for a week. That gap is what our private service is for.
Both vaccines are given at the same appointment, one in each arm, and you are out in about ten minutes.
Flu
The flu jab
Free on the NHS if you are 65 or over, pregnant, in a clinical risk group, a carer, a frontline health or social care worker, or living in a care home. Children get a nasal spray through school or the GP. If that is you, you can book with us through the NHS App or by phone and we will fit you in.
If it is not you, we vaccinate privately from 1 October. Healthy adults under 65, people who want the jab before the December slot their GP offered, anyone living with an older relative, winter travellers and cruise passengers, and people who simply had a rotten time with flu last year.
The vaccine we use
Every flu vaccine in the UK this season is trivalent, covering two influenza A strains and one B. For adults under 65 we use an inactivated, egg-free vaccine. For over 65s we use an enhanced vaccine, adjuvanted or high-dose, which produces a stronger response in older immune systems. An egg allergy affects which product we choose, not whether you can have one.
Timing
Protection builds over 10 to 14 days and lasts the season. October and November are ideal. A jab in January still beats no jab, because flu usually runs into February and March.
Staff flu jabs
We vaccinate teams from Woking-area businesses, in clinic with vouchers or on site for larger groups. Call 01483 478 181 to arrange.
Free NHS flu vaccine, 2026/27
- Aged 65 or over, including anyone turning 65 by 31 March 2027
- Aged 18 to 64 with a long-term condition: asthma or COPD, heart disease, diabetes, kidney or liver disease, a neurological condition, a weakened immune system, or BMI of 40+
- Pregnant, at any stage (from 1 September)
- Care home residents
- Carers, and people living with someone immunosuppressed
- Frontline health and social care workers
- Children aged 2 or 3 on 31 August 2026, school-aged children, and children aged 6 months to 17 in a risk group (from 1 September)
COVID
The COVID vaccine
For autumn 2026 the NHS offers the COVID vaccine to adults aged 75 and over, residents of older adult care homes, and anyone aged six months and over who is immunosuppressed. That is the whole list. Most adults under 75 are outside it, and protection from any earlier dose has faded.
From 1 October we offer this season's updated COVID vaccine privately to anyone aged 12 and over. It is the same mRNA vaccine family the NHS uses, reformulated for 2026/27 to track the Omicron descendants that have circulated over the past two years.
What it does
Last autumn's programme measured 47% effectiveness against hospitalisation in the three months after vaccination. For people who would never have been hospitalised, it shortens and softens the illness. It primes the immune system against the family of viruses in circulation rather than any single variant, so it remains the best available protection whichever strain is dominant when you catch it.
Requirements
Aged 12 or over, and at least three months since your last dose. You do not need to have had a previous dose. If you have had COVID recently, wait until you have fully recovered.
Who books the private COVID vaccine
- Adults aged 50 to 74 who were covered under earlier NHS programmes and want to stay protected
- Anyone living with or caring for someone elderly, immunosuppressed or pregnant
- People with long-term conditions that fall short of the NHS immunosuppression definition, such as diabetes or heart and lung disease
- Pregnant women: recommended by the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, not funded this year
- Anyone who had a bad time with COVID or long COVID
- People with a wedding, an operation, a long trip or a new baby coming up over winter
What to expect
On the day
Do not come if you have a temperature. A cold is fine.
Screening form
Two minutes on a tablet or paper: allergies, medicines, previous reactions, date of any last COVID dose.
Pharmacist check
We confirm which vaccines suit you and whether either is free on the NHS.
Injection
Upper arm. Both vaccines together if you are having both, usually one in each arm.
Go
No waiting unless you have a history of fainting or severe allergy, in which case we keep you for 15 minutes.
Side effects
Mild and short. A sore arm, and in some people tiredness, a headache, aches or a slight temperature for a day. These are commoner after the COVID vaccine than the flu one, so if you have a big day tomorrow, book for the day after. Neither vaccine contains live virus; neither can give you flu or COVID.
Who should not have them
Almost nobody is ruled out. The exceptions are a previous serious allergic reaction to a dose or an ingredient, and a severe egg allergy that has needed hospital treatment, where we may need a specific flu product. Tell us about anticoagulants, bleeding disorders and any previous reaction.
Prices
Prices
Pharmacist consultation included. NHS-eligible patients pay nothing for the NHS vaccine.
Flu vaccine
Private, from 1 October. £19.99 for under 65s (egg-free vaccine), £25 for over 65s (enhanced vaccine).
Book fluFlu and COVID together
Both vaccines in one visit, one in each arm. Saves a second trip.
Book bothCOVID vaccine
Updated 2026/27 formulation. Age 12+, at least three months since your last dose.
Book COVIDStaff flu vouchers are available for employers. Ask about the RSV vaccine and the shingles vaccine if you are over 50.
FAQs
Common questions
When is the best time to get a flu jab in Woking?
October or November, before flu starts circulating widely. It is still worth having in December or January if you missed the window.
Can I get a flu jab without an appointment?
Walk-ins are welcome when we have a pharmacist free, which is most of the day outside peak times. Booking guarantees your slot.
Can I have flu and COVID jabs at the same time?
Yes. They are routinely given together, and the NHS recommends it where both are due. One in each arm, no extra side effects beyond a slightly sorer arm.
Does this year's flu jab cover the K strain?
Yes. All three strains in the 2026/27 vaccine have been updated, including subclade K H3N2, the strain that dominated last winter.
I am 65 and NHS eligible. Should I just go to my GP?
You can come to us instead. Pharmacies deliver NHS flu vaccines and we often have appointments sooner. Book through the NHS App and choose FastHeal Woking, or call us.
Can my employer pay for staff flu jabs?
Yes. We run voucher schemes and on-site clinics for Woking-area businesses. Call 01483 478 181.
Can I get the COVID vaccine privately if I am under 75?
Yes. Anyone aged 12 and over can have it privately, provided it is at least three months since any previous dose.
Which COVID vaccine do you use?
The updated 2026/27 mRNA vaccine, the same family used by the NHS, reformulated for this season.
I am pregnant. Can I have both?
The flu vaccine is recommended in pregnancy at any stage and is free on the NHS from 1 September. The COVID vaccine is recommended in pregnancy by the RCOG but is not in this year's NHS programme, so it is available privately.
I had COVID a few weeks ago. Should I still have the vaccine?
Yes, once you have recovered. Infection gives some protection but it fades quickly, and the vaccine tops it up.
Do you offer the RSV vaccine?
The NHS offers RSV to people aged 75 to 79 and to pregnant women from 28 weeks through GP practices. Ask us about private availability.
Can children have a private flu jab?
Most children are covered by the NHS nasal spray through school or the GP. Ask us about options for children who fall outside the scheme.
Find us
Find us on Woking High Street
FastHeal Clinic is at 3 Mercia Walk, a short walk from Woking station and the Peacocks car park. Private consultation rooms, a friendly team, and ten minutes from arriving to leaving on a normal day.
Sorted before the clocks go back
Ten minutes on Woking High Street, and one less thing to think about before Christmas.