​Radcliffe man is vaccination pioneer – for the second time!

Leslie Berkeley could be forgiven for having a sense of déjà vu after becoming one the first people in Radcliffe to get the coronavirus vaccination.

For, back in the 1950s, he was among the first in the town to volunteer for the then new polio jab! At the time, he was 24 and the youngest councillor on the former Radcliffe Borough Council, and went for the vaccination with his wife Valerie (21) and their tenth-month-old daughter Denise.

They were the second complete family from Radcliffe to receive the vaccination, and he was quoted as saying: “Immunisation against polio is a fine thing. I think everyone who has the opportunity ought to take advantage of it.”

History repeated itself on Saturday (19 Dec) when Mr Berkeley, now aged 86, headed for Bealey’s in Radcliffe to get his Covid vaccination.

Bealey’s is the second centre in the borough to open in the last week for Covid vaccinations (the other is Prestwich Walk-In centre) and plans are under way for more to open shortly. Around 900 people were vaccinated at Bealey's in the first three days since it opened.

Dr Victoria Moyle, Lead GP for the Bealey’s Vaccination Centre, said: “Co-ordinating the delivery of the Covid vaccinations from the Bealeys site has been both challenging and rewarding in equal measure. Staff, volunteers and most of all our patients were key in making the first wave of delivery from this site a success.

“This is the start of perhaps the largest public health intervention that we will ever undertake and I encourage everyone to have the vaccine when they are invited to do so.’

Residents who are eligible for a Covid jab will be contacted by their GP – please do not contact your doctor’s surgery before then.

People who have had the vaccine are also reminded that they need to go back for their second dose for the vaccine to be fully effective, and that they must still follow Covid-safe guidelines and maintain social distancing, wash their hands and wear a face mask.

Lesley Jones, Bury’s director of public health, added: “While the arrival of a safe and effective vaccine is great news, it will take months for the vaccine to be rolled out across the country and to all age groups.

“We must not forget that this potentially fatal virus hasn’t gone anywhere; in fact, there is now a new strain which is 70% more infectious. We must all continue to take precautions to reduce its transmission – keep your distance, wear a face mask, and wash your hands - if we want to save lives, protect our NHS and get daily life back to normal.”

ENDS

Press release issued: 22 December 2020.

Picture: Leslie Berkeley receives his Covid vaccination from Practice Nurse Amanda Williams.

Note to editors: A report of Mr Berkeley receiving his polio jab in the 1950s was in the Bury Times: https://www.burytimes.co.uk/news/4176698.young-councillor-braves-injection/