Two pints of lager and a Covid jab, please ... Northampton village pub is latest walk-in vaccination venue

Covid jabs are now available with a pint and a prayer in Northamptonshire.

A Northampton church and a village pub have been added to the list of walk-in vaccination venues as the drive to deliver boosters continues.

Healthcare and emergency services combined to declare a system-wide major incident last week as the number of hospital cases and staff off work rose sharply.

Jabs are now available at St Michael and All Angels' Church and at The George Inn, Brixworth, in an effort to make vaccines more accessible.

■ Click HERE for up-to-date details on where you can get a Covid jab TODAY.

County Covid-19 vaccination programme director, Chris Pallot, said: “We are once again ramping up to deal with the impact of Omicron as cases are continuing to rise.

“Our teams have been working hard to increase the capacity of our sites so that we can protect the public as quickly as possible. We have thousands and thousands of additional bookable appointments available as well as number of walk-in sites across the county.”

“The evidence shows that having your Covid-19 vaccines significantly lowers your risk of serious illness and hospitalisation.

"Also, having Covid-19 does not protect you from Omicron. Having your vaccines is the best form of protection against Covid-19 and its variants.

“If you are over 18 and it’s been at least three months since you had your second dose, do not delay getting your booster.

"Two doses of vaccine are not enough to protect against Covid-19 and Omicron."

Ramgarhia Sikh Temple is another of Northampton's religious settings being used as a vaccination centre.

As well as offering the booster jab to everyone who is eligible, drop-in clinics offer first, second and third primary doses.

Alternatively, appointments can be booked online at or by calling 119.

More than one-and-a-a-half million vaccine doses have now been given in Northamptonshire, including over 400,000 booster and third doses.

Around four in every five over 12s county-wide have had at least one jab.

The number of Covid patients being treated at Northampton General and Kettering General hospitals rose to 150 by Friday (January 7) while around ten per cent of staff were unable to work through sickness or while isolating.

Confirming the major incident on Friday, chief executive Simon Weldon warned: "The likelihood is that pressure in going to intensify in next two-to-three weeks.

"It's important we act and get ahead of the curve prior to the surge we believe is coming."