Dr Vanessa Saliba from the UKHSA said the “big” outbreak was “mostly affecting unvaccinated children under 10 in schools and nurseries”.
She said: “Measles is a nasty illness for any child, but for some it can lead to long term complications and tragically death, but is so easily preventable with two doses of the MMRV [measles, mumps, rubella, chickenpox] vaccine.”
Children who had missed doses should “catch up as soon as possible” to protect themselves and other children who are too young to be vaccinated or unable to do so for health reasons, she added.
Dr Saliba also urged those travelling abroad over the Easter holidays to check their vaccination status because “measles is widespread in some countries with close links to the UK, and there are ongoing outbreaks in parts of Europe”.
