Please find below a range of health information, guidance and resources, designed to minimise the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
People in Scotland can register for their COVID-19 vaccination online if they:
- are 16 years old or over
- have not already had their first COVID-19 vaccination
- are registered with a GP surgery in Scotland
Eligible people in Shetland, Orkney and the Western Isles will be contacted by their health board.
If anyone eligible for the self-registration system (or who should have already received their vaccine) doesn’t have access to the internet or a smartphone, they can still register for SMS and email updates by calling the national COVID-19 Vaccination Helpline: 0800 030 8013.
(Please note: if you are 12 years old or over and are a household contact of a person who has had an immunosuppression letter, you should call the helpline number above.)
To register, please visit the NHS Scotland self-registration page.
Alternatively, for further information, visit the NHS Inform Scotland website.
Second doses of the COVID-19 vaccines are now available for all eligible people over 18 years old in Scotland.
Vaccination clinics will remain open and anyone who has not yet received their vaccination, for whatever reason, is reminded that it is never too late to get vaccinated and is urged to go to a local drop-in clinic, or book a convenient appointment via NHS Inform.
For further information, please view the full web article.
All mainland NHS Boards are currently running drop-in vaccination clinics, including NHS Forth Valley.
The Falkirk clinic runs 4pm – 7pm on Monday – Friday, and 8:30am – 7pm on Saturday and Sunday, from Units 1 and 2 at Falkirk Community Hospital (the old Falkirk Royal Infirmary), Westburn Avenue, Falkirk, FK1 5QE (directions linked for your convenience, via Google Maps).
If you are under 18 years old, you should ensure the clinic offers the Pfizer vaccine before attending. Please note that AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines are available at all clinics in Forth Valley, but the Moderna vaccine is currently only available at a number of clinics in NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde, NHS Lothian and NHS Grampian. People can attend vaccination clinics in other NHS board areas if this is more convenient.
Invitations for vaccines are now going out to young people aged 12 – 17 years old with specific health conditions that make them more vulnerable to COVID-19, with first doses expected to be offered to this group by the end of August.
According to NHS Inform, The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has advised that young people aged 12 – 15 years old at an increased risk of COVID-19 should be offered the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.
This includes children and young people with:
- severe neuro-disabilities
- Down’s syndrome
- underlying conditions resulting in immunosuppression
- diagnosis of a learning or intellectual disability
The JCVI also recommends that those aged 12 – 15 years old who live with someone who is immunosuppressed (even if they don’t have any health conditions themselves) should also be offered the vaccine.
If your child or young person is eligible, you will be contacted by NHS Scotland with your child’s vaccination appointment details. Some children under specialist care will be contacted directly by their healthcare professional and others will receive a vaccination invitation letter. (Local health boards aim to vaccinate those who cannot attend a clinic in their own home or a care setting; these health boards will contact the parents or carers of these children directly to organise this.)
For further information, please visit the NHS Inform page.
Information on the priority groups in Scotland is also available via the NHS Inform website.
As many venues and holiday destinations begin to request confirmation of COVID-19 vaccination status, people in Forth Valley can now access their vaccination status and request a printed copy online via NHS Inform (linked for your convenience), or by contacting the COVID-19 Status Helpline by phone: 0808 196 8565.
The helpline is open every day from 10am – 6pm.
Please do not contact your GP Practice. If you have lost or forgotten your username or password, you can create new ones by selecting the “recover username” or “forgotten your password” options.
If you have never received a unique username, you can sign up for one by using the “recover username” option, and entering your name using CAPITAL LETTERS.
Please note, it is your responsibility to check what the requirements are to enter the country you are travelling to. It is also your responsibility to check what the requirements are to return to Scotland from your country of travel. Further information on travel requirements is available via the Scottish Government and UK Government websites.
NHS Inform has a range of accessible information available on COVID-19 vaccines, including:
- general advice leaflets
- audio advice leaflets
- British Sign Language (BSL) video translations
- leaflets translated into over 30 other languages (including Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Gaelic, Pashto, Latvian, Spanish, Vietnamese, and Yoruba amongst others)
- Easy Read versions
- large print versions
Vaccines are the best protection against COVID-19, and NHS Scotland strongly recommends you get the vaccine when offered it.
For further information on COVID-19 vaccines, please visit any of the pages listed below, or watch the video from NHS Scotland and Scottish Government.
- NHS Inform (including information on the different types of vaccines in use, information for people who are pregnant or breastfeeding, what to expect from your appointment, and accessib;e information (linked above)
- NHS Inform page on vaccines and health conditions
- NHS Inform page on the priority groups in Scotland
- World Health Organization (WHO) (including their “Vaccines Explained” series)
Following the move to beyond Level 0, Scottish Government has released the Chief Medical Officer’s letter to everyone on the highest risk list from COVID-19 (previously the shielding list).
The letter is available to view or download as a pdf from the CVS Falkirk website.
They recognise that many people on this list will be worried about the move beyond level 0, and the likely impact of feeling isolated for long periods of time on people’s mental health. As a result, the letter includes a leaflet written with people at highest risk in mind, with advice on coping with anxiety, stress and feeling down.
The letter also provides further information on vaccines, including on their effectiveness in the highest risk group in Scotland, and the COVID-19 booster programme, along with supermarket priority slots, returning to work and vaccines for young people with health conditions.
For further information (including extra materials), please view the full web article.
Scotland’s Chief Medical Officer (CMO), Dr Gregor Smith, is urging pregnant people to get the coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine to protect them and their baby.
Following a recent study showing evidence of increased hospitalisations, Dr Smith is encouraging all expectant parents to discuss the vaccine with their healthcare professionals so they can make a fully informed choice.
The UK Obstetric Service (UKOSS) published research last month which showed the number of pregnant people being admitted to hospital with COVID-19 across the UK is increasing, with many experiencing acute symptoms. The report also suggests the Delta variant is associated with an increased risk of severe illness among hospitalised pregnant people.
“We want all pregnant [people] to have the information they need to make an informed choice, so if you have any concerns or questions, please speak to your midwife, GP, or go along to a drop-in clinic. By far the best course of action for you and your baby is to get both doses of the vaccine.”
For further information, including Dr Smith’s full statement, please visit the Scottish Government website.
In addition to NHS Inform’s range of accessible information available on COVID-19 vaccines (please see the “COVID-19 Vaccines: Accessible Vaccine Information” tab above), Doctors of the World has released translations of COVID-19 vaccine information in over 30 languages, produced in partnership with the British Red Cross, Migrant Help and Clear Voice.
The translations are part of their project to improve access to vaccines, in order to support migrants, refugees, people experiencing homelessness, sex workers, and Gypsy, Roma, and Traveller (GRT) communities in the UK, which have been disproportionately impacted by the pandemic.
Doctors of the World is keen for these translations to reach migrant and asylum-seeking communities across the UK.
The translations are available as pdf documents to download, or videos to watch via YouTube. Languages currently available include Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Pashto, Spanish, Turkish, and Vietnamese, amongst others.
To access any of the translations, please click on the relevant links above. For further information on the COVID-19 Vaccine Advocacy Project, please visit the Doctors of the World website.
The COVID-19 workplace testing programme in Scotland has been expanded.
Third sector organisations with 10 or more employees (which can include formal volunteers) can now sign up for asymptomatic workplace testing. This will help to identify emerging COVID-19 cases and stop transmission as Scotland moves beyond level 0.
Organisations can adopt an “LFD Collect” model and distribute testing kits to employees, or establish their own asymptomatic test site (ATS) model in workplaces. The testing offer will initially be in place until the end of September 2021.
For further information (including how to check eligibility), please view the full web article.
As face coverings are still required in most indoor public places, indoor communal spaces, and in workplaces and on public transport, we have included Scottish Government’s guidance on face coverings in this page.
The guidance explains where you need to wear a face covering, and exemptions from wearing one.
By law, people must wear a face covering or mask in most indoor public places, including public transport, in Scotland. (The guidance includes a complete list of settings where everyone who can must wear face coverings.) People are also advised to wear a face covering outdoors in crowded places.
Wearing a face covering helps to reduce the spread of COVID-19, as people can still catch and pass on the virus even if they have been vaccinated.
The mandatory requirement to continue wearing face coverings is subject to regular review, and will continue to take account of social and economic factors, as well as the of the current impacts on public health and risks of transmission in Scotland. Decisions on measures to control the virus are guided by the latest clinical and scientific evidence, to ensure requirements are necessary and proportionate.
If people are exempt, they may choose not to wear a face covering. That would be the case if, for example:
- they are under 12 years old
- they have an illness or disability which means they cannot wear one
- wearing one would make them extremely anxious or distressed
Alternatively, they may be able to wear a face shield and in this case should do, as this is safer than not wearing any face covering at all. Further information on exemptions is available via the Scottish Government website.
Please note: People who are exempt should not be made to wear a face covering or denied access to places where face coverings are required.
Exemption cards
It is not mandatory for those who are exempt to prove their exemption. However, the person can request a free face covering exemption card by phone: 0800 121 6240, or through the Face Covering Exemption Card Service website.
To view the full guidance around face coverings, please visit the Scottish Government website.
