MORE than half of 16 to 17-year-olds in Barrow have received a first dose of the coronavirus vaccine, figures reveal.

It comes as pupils across England return to school after the summer holidays, amid a warning over a potential rise in cases.

While a new mass-testing policy has been introduced to tackle outbreaks in schools, the Government is also calling on those eligible to get a Covid jab.

Public Health England data shows 842 people aged 16 and 17 in Barrow had received a jab by September 4 – 56 per cent of the age group, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service database.

That was higher than the 49 per cent average across England.

Uptake varied widely across the country – in Hart in the South East, 72 per cent of 16 to 17-year-olds had received a jab by September 4, while the lowest uptake, 23 per cent, was recorded in in the London borough of Hackney.

Those aged 16 and 17 became eligible for a vaccine last month and pop-up vaccination centres were set up at events such as music festivals to encourage uptake.

But Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the UK needed to speed up vaccinating youngsters in the age group, who are “a very important group for potential transmission”.

“There are still some who need that protection and I would just urge everybody who hasn’t yet had a jab to go and get one,” he added.

The re-opening of schools in Scotland last month is believed to have contributed to a rise in cases there and there are fears the same will happen in England.