Hi all.

I'm sure this is going to start a huge debate but just want to say before I get shot down that everyone is entitled their opinion and this is something I strongly believe in.......

We are currently in uk and hoping to emigrate to Melbourne next year. I don't believe in vaccinating my children for various reasons. For us to gain entry to Australia do my children really need to have vaccinations or is this simply a choice taken by parents as it is in the uk?? I am strongly against all vaccinations however if some are needed for entry then I will have to swallow my pride!!

Any info welcomed please.......hayley

I don't think that they are compulsory, but your children may be excluded from school if there are any outbreaks of a vaccine-preventable disease. In NSW at least. Don't know about the other states, but I would imagine pretty much the same.

You don't need to prove innoculations for the medical although some people have taken their childs records to the med, not sure if they've shown them.

However, you may have a problem enrolling your child into school. Some schools want to see proof of innoculations before accepting the child. There have been various Whooping Cough and Mumps outbreaks in the last couple of years and I believe (but have no physical proof) that some schools can be strict on the matter.

That's great news......thanks for the info. So many people have said "you won't get in without having any!!" but they seem to be all from family who don't want us to go!! we are heading to Melbourne so will check with schools there. Thanks again x

Same here in WA, I work in a school and we have a box to tick on our database which flags all unvaccinated children so we know who to exclude if there is an outbreak of a particular disease.

Hi northernbird.....

Does an unvaccinated child have trouble getting into the school in the first place??

Is anyone in our situation at your school?
Thanks

We cannot refuse on the basis of non-vaccination. If you are in boundary for our school then you get in. I can't speak for other states. I did know of one private nursery her in Perth when I first arrived that would not enrol unvaccinated children as they deemed them a health risk.

They have even brought the whooping cough vaccination for babies forward a few months from the normal schedule because of the current danger posed to newborns from unvaccinated people. Mums/dads and grandparents with significant contact are also being advised to get it.

my daughter was born in Aus. To get her into childcare, we had to show her vacc schedule and show she was up to date. (we are in Melbourne). Had she not had the appropriate vaccinations, she could not have gone to that daycare.

I am under the impression that she could have difficulty going to school if not suitably vaccinated but maybe they would just exclude her during outbreaks. Still I have had her vaccinated as I am not sure I could bear to see her ill with preventable illnesses. (She caught chickenpox really badly before the 18 month old vaccination, and was in a bad way).

Whooping cough and measles are a big issue at the moment.

Go on then.... why?

I'm quite impressed it hasn't kicked off to be honest.

Not sure about Melbourne but I'd imagine it may have the same rules as WA. You don't have to have your child vaccinated for school entry nor daycare entry as long as you have a conscientious objector form signed by a GP.

You can print off the form online and bring it to a GP when you arrive. I think the point of it is to make sure you have made an informed choice and not that you just couldn't be bothered going for the vaccines. Nobody is going to force you to have your child immunised.

One you have the form signed the info is then entered onto the childhood vaccination register (just as it would be if you vaccinated them). Whenever you are required to provide the child's immunisation status you use this form i.e. for Centerlink Payments (child benefit), school etc .....

Hope this helps

Neither of our children was vaccinated when we migrated to Australia. There were no issues with settling permanently.

Both children have CO forms, signed by their GP, with whom I have had more than one discussion on the matter. He has no issues with their status (although he obviously wishes I'd reconsider on what he considers the bare minimum). Perhaps we will down the road, but that is between our family and our doctor.

My daughter has been enrolled in three schools to date (two public, one private) with the CO form. None have refused her entry. No one asked her to stay home from the public school when a couple of cases of pertussis and chicken pox popped up. I was given an info sheet FYI and just said, "thanks for that," to the teacher.

You'd also want to keep the originals of the CO form on file at home...and yes, Centrelink, Medicare, and the schools will all want copies for their records.

I know at least three unvaccinated kids that have had whooping cough within the last three months. It's terrible that so many unvaccinated kids are getting so sick. I was speaking to a micobiologist friend this morning who is working on the diptheria bacteria that killed an unvaccinated young lady here recently. She said she really felt like bringing it to the parents attention that their choice to not vaccinate their child ultimately killed her, but of course would never say it to grieving parents.

Some schools and pre-schools will not enrol children who have not been vaccinated. You may also find that some GPs will refuse to take you on their books if you refuse to have your children immunised. I think that some child benefits are also dependent on having your child immunised.
Britain is now viewed as a higher risk area because of the upsurge in infections such as measles and mumps in unvaccinated children and young people. In Australia, childhood immunisation rates are very high - around 95%.