It was announced last week that all young children in the UK will be offered a free chickenpox vaccine by the NHS from January next year.

It will be given as two doses, at 12 and 18 months of age, combined with the existing MMR jab, which protects against measles, mumps and rubella.

Currently the vaccine against varicella - the proper name for chickenpox - is not included in the local vaccine schedule. But that could change.

'Public Health Services and our local vaccination and immunisation committee strongly support the introduction of the combined MMR/varicella vaccination programme,' a public health spokeswoman said.

'This would replace the current MMR vaccine currently offered to children at 12 months and 3.5 years of age.'

The move follows recommendations by UK Joint Committee for Vaccination and Immunisation to introduce the two-dose programme against the highly contagious condition.

The local spokeswoman said Public Health had been aware that the UK announcement was imminent and would now be looking to introduce the programme following the JCVI recommendations.

'We have put in a budget request to be included in the 2026 Budget,' she said.

'As all are aware there are multiple competing priorities for investment across Health & Social Care and an update will be provided later in the year once the Budget process has been finalised, including through the States Budget debate in November.'

Jersey has already confirmed it will start the new vaccine regime from next year.

Varicella is very common and affects most children during childhood, although it can be caught for the first time at any age.

In the UK about 90% of children have had by the time they are 10 years old.

It is often more serious in very young infants and adults, in particular in pregnancy, when it may cause complications in both the mother and the foetus, and in adults who are immunosuppressed.

Varicella vaccination is included in the routine vaccine schedules of several countries, including the USA, Canada, Australia and Germany.

The JCVI has said that including varicella in the routine vaccination schedule would decrease the number of cases of varicella seen in childhood rapidly and dramatically.

The programme would also prevent severe cases of varicella and other serious complications of varicella, which, while rare, may have otherwise resulted in hospitalisation or other serious outcomes.