Parents’ and guardians’ views on the acceptability of a future Covid-19 vaccine: a multi-methods study in England

Background

The availability of a COVID-19 vaccine has been heralded as key to controlling the COVID-19 pandemic. COVID-19 vaccination programme success will rely on public willingness to be vaccinated.

Methods

We used a multi-methods approach – involving an online cross-sectional survey and semi-structured interviews - to investigate the views of parents’ and guardians’ on the acceptability of a future COVID-19 vaccine. 1252 parents and guardians (aged 16+ years) who reported living in England with a child aged 18 months or under completed the survey. Nineteen survey respondents were interviewed.

Findings

Most participants reported they would definitely accept or were unsure but leaning towards accepting a COVID-19 vaccine for themselves (Definitely 55.8%; Unsure but leaning towards yes 34.3%) and their child/children (Definitely 48.2%; Unsure but leaning towards yes 40.9%). Participants were more likely to accept a COVID-19 vaccine for themselves than for their child/children. Less than 4% of participants reported that they would definitely not accept a COVID-19 vaccine for themselves or their children. Participants that self-reported as Black, Asian, Chinese, Mixed or Other ethnicity were almost 3 times more likely to reject a COVID-19 vaccine for themselves and their children than White British, White Irish and White Other participants. Respondents from lower income households were also more likely to reject a COVID-19 vaccine.

The main reason for vaccine acceptance was for self-protection from COVID-19. Common concerns were around COVID-19 vaccine safety and effectiveness, which were largely prompted by the newness and rapid development of the vaccine.

Conclusion

To alleviate concerns, information on how COVID-19 vaccines are developed and tested, including their safety and efficacy, must be communicated clearly to the public. To prevent Inequalities in uptake, it is crucial to understand and address factors that may affect COVID-19 vaccine acceptability in ethnic minority lower-income groups who are disproportionately affected by COVID-19.