The Great Yorkshire Showground in Harrogate is to be used for the vaccine rollout from next week.
The first vaccination is due to be given on Tuesday and the programme is expected to last for several months.
The government has asked the 17 GP practices in Harrogate and the surrounding district, including Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge and Masham to oversee the rollout.
The practices are appealing for volunteers to marshal the car park and signpost patients through the vaccination site at the showground, which is owned by the Yorkshire Agricultural Society.
No details have been given to the media about the rollout but a post on the Harrogate covid co-operation Facebook group yesterday on behalf of the GP practices revealed the news. It said:
“Harrogate and rural district are working together in order to plan for delivering a mass vaccination programme and we need to ask primary care staff and volunteers to help.
“We will need staff and volunteers to undertake a variety of roles and we need to plan for vaccinations to be carried out seven days a week, 8am-8pm, including bank holidays.
“This is a huge ask, but we would like volunteers to indicate if they would be willing to help in some capacity.”
The 250-acre showground has ample car parking and is used to staging large events, most notably the three-day Great Yorkshire Show, which was cancelled this year.
But nothing in the Yorkshire Agricultural Society’s 183-year history compares with the task in hand.
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The GPs’ post today said it required 18 volunteers a day. Morning sessions will start with an 8am briefing and the first jabs will be given at 8.30am.
Morning sessions will end at 1.15pm and afternoon vaccinations will take place from 2.30pm to 6.15pm.
The GPs’ post said:
“Unfortunately we aren’t able to offer vaccinations to volunteers at this stage as we have to prioritise certain patient groups.
“Next week is the first stage of the vaccination programme and we are going to need volunteers from the New Year onwards to fulfil the same types of roles for probably a number of months.”
Anyone interested in volunteering is invited to register their interest and complete the questionnaire here.
