Hospitals and schools across the United Kingdom are grappling with a surge in flu cases this winter, prompting emergency measures, temporary closures, and renewed calls for vaccination and mask-wearing as the country faces what health officials warn may be an unprecedented flu season.
On December 8, 2025, a new initiative began in the Midlands: a roving vaccination vehicle started visiting hospitals in Walsall and Wolverhampton, offering flu and Covid-19 jabs to anyone who needed them—no appointment required. As reported by BBC News, more than three million people across the Midlands had already received their flu jab by early December, but the urgency has only increased as cases continue to rise. The minibus, parked at Walsall Manor and New Cross Hospitals throughout December and January, is part of a push to make vaccines as accessible as possible.
“As part of our efforts to protect staff, patients and residents, we are making getting vaccinated as accessible as possible,” said Sally Roberts of the NHS Black Country Integrated Care Board, underscoring the seriousness of the situation. Caroline Whyte, deputy chief nursing officer at Royal Wolverhampton and Walsall Healthcare NHS Trusts, added, “For lots of different reasons, we recognise it may not always be easy for people to get to a GP practice or pharmacy for their vaccination. To make sure they don’t miss out, this roving vehicle will bring the flu and Covid vaccines to our two main hospital sites. It means patients, staff or visitors can pop in for their vaccine and protect themselves this winter. There is no need to book—just come along and speak to one of the friendly vaccination team who will be able to help you.”
The need for such measures is clear. According to the latest NHS data, as of November 24, there were more than 2,300 people with flu occupying hospital beds in the West Midlands—an increase of about 1,000 from the previous week. Across England, the number of flu patients in hospital has hit a record high for this time of year, with the NHS warning that the country is facing an unprecedented flu season.
The crisis is not confined to hospitals. Schools across the UK are closing their doors amid escalating outbreaks. According to the Daily Mail, headteachers have described the situation as “like being back in Covid times,” with hundreds of pupils and staff off sick at once. Some schools have even reduced singing in assemblies, recalling pandemic-era measures, in an attempt to cut the spread of illness.
St Martin’s School in Caerphilly, South Wales, was forced to close temporarily starting December 5 after more than 250 pupils and staff fell ill with flu-like symptoms, including vomiting, diarrhoea, high temperatures, cough, headaches, and fatigue. The school implemented a “firebreak” period for deep cleaning, with online learning replacing in-person classes. Public Health Wales confirmed it had been in contact with the school, which had conducted a risk assessment before deciding on closure. The average recovery time for those affected has been about seven days, and parents were urged to keep children at home if they showed any symptoms, even if mild.
Elsewhere, Congleton High School in Cheshire closed for three days in late November after high numbers of pupils reported flu-like symptoms. Headteacher Heidi Thurland explained the closure was to allow for a deep clean, with remote learning continuing in the interim. In Leeds, Wigton Moor Primary School reported that one in six children were off or sent home last week with high temperatures or coughs. To mitigate the spread, the school reduced singing in assemblies. “We’ve had assemblies, but we’ve not sung in assemblies because again, we know that that’s something that spreads it quite a lot,” headteacher Elaine Bown told BBC Yorkshire. She added, “We are rehearsing for nativities at the moment and Christmas performances and we know from Covid that singing in schools is one of the worst spreaders. But we are also trying hard not to cancel Christmas, we do not want to do that, so we are trying to make it as non-infectious as we can manage.”
In County Londonderry, Ebrington Primary School saw 170 pupils off sick on a single day, with some children hospitalized. Principal Brian Guthrie remarked to BBC News NI, “It took me back to 2020, to be quite honest, the attendance was actually worse last week than it would have been at any of the worst points, if you like, back in Covid times so, yeah, it was a bit of a shock.”
Hospitals are also feeling the strain. University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust declared a “critical incident” as Royal Stoke Hospital and Stafford County Hospital faced “extremely high demand.” NHS Ayrshire and Arran canceled routine visiting across all its hospitals due to significant pressure from a sharp rise in viral respiratory infections, including flu. In London, hospitalizations with flu have tripled compared to the same time last year, with an average of 259 flu patients occupying beds daily last week, up from 89 last year. NHS England chief executive Sir Jim Mackey warned that by the end of this week, there could be between 5,000 and 8,000 beds occupied by flu patients—potentially surpassing the previous record of 5,400.
Experts say the surge is being driven by a “drifted” influenza A(H3N2) strain, now dubbed “subclade K” or “super flu,” which is more infectious and causes more severe illness than last year’s strains. Professor Nicola Lewis, director of the World Influenza Centre at the Francis Crick Institute, explained, “We haven’t seen a virus like this for a while, these dynamics are unusual. H3 is always a hotter virus, it’s a nastier virus, it’s more impactful on the population.”
Officials believe the spike in flu rates is largely due to increased transmission among school-aged children, with H3N2 accounting for the vast majority of cases. Simon Clarke, associate professor in cellular microbiology at the University of Reading, told the Daily Mail, “We’ve known for many years that children are an engine of spread for flu, and the recent data do show increasing cases of infection in educational settings. However, I think the problem most likely to arise is staff getting ill. If there are not enough teachers able to come to work, a school cannot operate safely.” Clarke emphasized the importance of vaccination, saying, “People should get their vaccine, especially if they’re entitled to it free on the NHS—just because someone may have had a vaccine last year, does not mean they are covered this year.”
The UK Health Security Agency has reiterated guidance that anyone feeling ill should wear a mask, as this can reduce the number of viral particles released and protect both the wearer and others from respiratory viruses. Some hospitals in London, Lincolnshire, Shropshire, and Oxfordshire have reintroduced mandatory mask rules in response to the alarming infection numbers.
Meanwhile, the flu crisis is not limited to the UK. On a 133-day world cruise that set sail from Hamburg on November 10, about 100 passengers and crew members fell ill with norovirus, experiencing symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhoea after stops in Boston, New York, and Miami, according to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Staff isolated infected passengers in an effort to contain the outbreak.
With experts and health officials warning that the NHS faces pressures “in a lot of ways… like the Covid period,” the message is clear: vaccination, vigilance, and community effort are crucial this winter. As schools and hospitals adapt to the new normal, the hope is that these measures will blunt the impact of what is shaping up to be a historic flu season.
