HAMPSHIRE is among the areas that is leading the way in the battle to protect people from Covid-19.

Almost 400,000 coronavirus vaccinations have been given to people across the county, with only four other parts of the country achieving a higher total.

Hampshire's success in trying to keep the virus at bay is revealed in new figures from Public Health England.

Out of 41 districts the county's vaccination programme is the fifth most successful, having given 397, 827 jabs to the elderly and vulnerable.

The only areas with higher figures than Hampshire are Cumbria and North East (620,590), West Yorkshire and Harrogate (433,196), Cheshire and Merseyside (560,982), and Greater Manchester Health and Social Care Partnership (556,260).

Alan Whitehead, Labour MP for Southampton Test, said: "This is great news and a testament to our local health teams across the city and the region.

"We can all be very proud of the efforts of these teams and it provides some light at the end of the tunnel."

Royston Smith, Tory MP for Southampton Itchen, added: "Hampshire has been extremely well organised. MPs have been updated weekly and kept across the detail.

"I would like to thank everyone who has made such a success of the vaccination programme. They have all done remarkable work and we are really proud of them.”

Hampshire county councillor David Harrison said: "The vaccination programme is going very well.

"Our government took a gamble, ordering vaccines before knowing if they would work and pass all the necessary tests, but it has paid off in terms of the speed of roll out.

"Absolute credit goes to the NHS and everyone involved in setting up and running the centres, including the volunteers. I have heard nothing but good reports about the operation."

Nationally more than 13 million people in the UK have had at least one dose of a Covid vaccine.

Two vaccines - developed by Pfizer-BioNTech and Oxford-AstraZeneca - are being used to protect against serious illness and death from Covid-19.

More than 60 vaccination centres have opened across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Locally, of the jabs already been given out, 20,910 are second doses - 17,487 to over 80s, 150 to ages 75-79, 98 to ages 70-74, and 3,175 to those aged under 70.

Of the 376,917 first doses administered, 100,579 have been given to those over 80, 70,629 to ages 75-79, 70,952 to ages 70-74, and 134,757 to those aged below 70 years of age.

According to the Office for National Statistics 2019 population estimates, which is the latest data, there were 106,379 residents aged more than 80 years old, 102,600 aged between 75 and 79, and 70,771 aged between 70 and 74.

The latest data from Public Health England covers the period of December 8, when the vaccine rollout began, to February 7.

MORE than 200,000 jabs have been given to people across Hampshire, making it the fifth area with the highest number of jabs rolled out, according to NHS figures.