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The centrally coordinated response that controlled the polio epidemics of the 1950s through immunisation led to the development of a national immunisation strategy in the UK and the formation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in 1963, which oversees the immunisation programme and advises the UK Department of Health on new vaccine introductions. As a result of technological advances in vaccine development and scientific advances in immunology and microbiology over the 56 years since then, and the formation of a comprehensive public health surveillance system for vaccine-preventable disease, the National Health Service immunisation programme now covers 18 serious diseases of childhood, with an astonishing impact on child health. Here we consider the formation of the JCVI and the development of the national immunisation programme and review the introduction of vaccines over the past half century to defend public health., Competing Interests: Competing interests: SLa, SLo, NDC and MER declare that they have no conflicts of interest. DS reports personal fees from vaccine manufacturers, outside the submitted work. AJP is Chair of the UK Department of Health’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, and the EMA Scientific Advisory Group on vaccines, and is a member of the WHO’s SAGE., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)

The impact of immunisation is best understood through a historical lens, since so many of the diseases which placed a burden on our population have been eliminated or controlled through immunisation. The United Kingdom (UK) National Health Service (NHS), which celebrated its 70 th birthday in 2018, is responsible for delivering the highly successful universal national immunisation programme. However, the first vaccines used in the UK were not part of a centrally coordinated programme until the 1960s. Resources that summarise the first 200 years of immunisation in the UK are not readily accessible. Here we provide a two part chronological insight into the history of the UK immunisation programme from primary sources. In Part I, we highlight the importance of wartime conditions, unprecedented vaccine development, and the polio outbreaks in the in driving developments in immunisation and discuss subsequent changes in the use of the original vaccines of the immunisation programme, namely, diphtheria, tetanus, pertussis, and polio. In Part 2, we discuss the formation of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and its role, working with public health agencies and advising the UK Governments on vaccine policy, to bring a comprehensive programme to defend the health of the population against serious infectious diseases, highlighting the importance of programme organisation and leadership., Competing Interests: Competing interests: SLa, SLo, NDM and MER declare that they have no conflicts of interest. DS reports personal fees from vaccine manufacturers, outside the submitted work. AJP reports grants from Okairos which ended in the past 36 months, and is Chair of the UK Department of Health’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation and the EMA scientific advisory group on vaccines, and is a member of the WHO’s SAGE., (© Author(s) (or their employer(s)) 2020. No commercial re-use. See rights and permissions. Published by BMJ.)