Lenny Henry pens an open letter urging black Britons to have the vaccine

“I felt it was important to do my bit, so I wrote this letter to Black Britain asking people not to get left behind, to not continue to be disproportionately impacted and to trust the facts from our doctors, professors and scientists…”

Sir Lenny Henry has written an open letter urging black Britons to have the vaccine. The TV star and Comic Relief co-founder, 62, has enlisted support from other high-profile figures, including actors Chiwetel Ejiofor and Thandie Newton, radio personality Trevor Nelson, musician KSI and author Malorie Blackman, as signatories.

According to the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics, vaccination rates for people in England identifying as having black African heritage stand at 58.8%, the lowest among all ethnic minority groups, and 68.7% within the black Caribbean community. By contrast, for people identifying as white British, there is an estimated take-up rate of 91.3% (Source: ONS). The disparity exists despite a widespread study suggesting black people are twice as likely as white people to catch the coronavirus.

To find out more about the Covid-19 vaccine please visit nhs.uk/CovidVaccine