School Immunisation Program

South Australia’s School Immunisation Program provides free recommended vaccines for South Australian students in Years 8 and 10.

Home-schooled and correspondence school students are also eligible to receive the recommended vaccines free.

Vaccines delivered through the school program are made available at no cost under the National Immunisation Program.

Fully trained and qualified vaccination teams visit all high schools in South Australia to deliver the program.

Vaccine consent packs are sent home to parents/carers early in the school year. To consent to vaccination, parents/carers are advised to read all the information provided, complete and sign the consent form, and return it to their child’s school.

Immunisation delivery is an essential service and should continue under the COVID-19 pandemic. See the Maintaining immunisation services during COVID-19 fact sheet (PDF 164KB) for further information.

Vaccines for 2021

Year 8

Protection produced by some vaccines will decline over time and booster doses may be needed to ensure high levels of protection are maintained (for example diphtheria, whooping cough and tetanus). A booster dose given in high school will provide protection over a longer period of time. Vaccines such as the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine are more effective if delivered at a specific age.

Year 10 

Meningococcal vaccines are also recommended for students in senior high school years, due to their increased risk of meningococcal disease.

For parents/carers

For further information on the School Immunisation Program, see the School Immunisation Program: Frequently asked questions page or contact your doctor or immunisation provider.

Communications toolkit for schools: second doses

Resources for schools, such as newsletter content and sample SMS messaging, to help with promotion of the School Immunisation Program.

Missed vaccines

If you are under 20 years of age, you can still receive missed vaccines under the School Immunisation Program for free. See your immunisation provider or doctor for further information.

School Program Immunisation Records

Copies of school immunisation records from 1996 to now can be accessed from the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR). If these records are incomplete, contact the School Immunisation Program provider (PDF 514KB).

Data collection

The School Immunisation Program is committed to ensuring that all eligible students have been offered the recommended funded vaccines for adolescents.

SA Health is able to access data on the number of students that have been immunised, to measure the success of the statewide program annually.

Further information

For further information on the School Immunisation Program, see the School Immunisation Program: Frequently asked questions page or contact your doctor or immunisation provider.