MORE volunteers are urgently required to support the COVID-19 vaccinations programme in Lancashire and South Cumbria.

With the UK Government announcing it is opening booster jabs to those ages 18to 39 in the next few weeks, thousands of people will become eligible for a further dose of the vaccine.

Jane Scattergood, senior responsible officer fo the Lancashire and South Cumbria vaccination programme, said: "We are so grateful to the thousands of people who have already applied and trained for voluntary roles as part of the NHS Covid-19 vaccine team.

"Thanks to these volunteers, and the many existing NHS staff who have trained to deliver vaccines or perform other important roles, we have had enough people to roll out the vaccine programme at pace to our local population.

"However, we now need more people to get involved as volunteers for the next phase, so if you can spare a few hours a week, please sign up - it's a great thing to do."

More than 1,500 people have so far volunteered and been part of the Covid-19 vaccinations programme, donating well over 100,000 hours to the cause.

Volunteers are managed by the Lancashire Volunteer Partnership, which recruits and provides training to those who want to get involved.