BOLTON is likely to escape a predicted measles epidemic that is set to strike the North-west, according to a leading health expert.

The town’s historically high uptake of immunisation and a series of innovative programmes to protect children are combining to make sure Bolton is the most prepared place in the region.

Graham Munslow, health protection consultant for NHS Bolton, said: “We are lucky in Bolton, without being complacent, that we have the highest uptake of the MMR vaccination in the North-west.

“It doesn’t mean we never get any cases, but it does mean the disease finds it difficult to spread.

“We have a ‘herd immunity’ — if someone catches it they are unlikely to come into contact with someone who hasn’t been immunised because so many people are protected.”

Mr Munslow said a series of initiatives in Bolton down the years had helped ensure a high take up. But other programmes — such as targeting older children who have never been vaccinated through their GPs — meant immunisation levels stayed high.

He said: “We want that to continue.”

It comes after the region’s Health Protection Agency issued a warning that the North-west was on the brink of a measles epidemic.

For more on this story, see Thursday's paper