The flu vaccine is recommended for people at higher risk of getting seriously ill from flu.

It's offered on the NHS every year in autumn or early winter.

You can get the free NHS flu vaccine if you:

• are aged 65 or over
• have certain long-term health conditions
• are pregnant
• live in a care home
• are the main carer for an older or disabled person, or receive a carer's allowance
• live with someone who has a weakened immune system

Frontline health and social care workers can also get a flu vaccine through their employer.

If you're 65 or over, or in one of the other at-risk groups, it's important to get medical help as soon as you feel unwell.

You can get help and advice from:

• a pharmacy – pharmacists can give treatment advice for a range of minor illnesses and can tell you if you need to see a doctor
• your GP – you may be able to speak to a GP online or over the phone, or go in for an appointment if they think you need to
• NHS 111 – go to 111.nhs.uk or call 111 if you have an urgent medical problem and you are not sure what to do

The sooner you get advice, the sooner you're likely to get better.

In an emergency, go to A&E immediately or call 999.

Flu is very infectious and easily spread to other people. You're more likely to give it to others in the first 5 days.

Flu is spread by germs from coughs and sneezes, which can live on hands and surfaces for 24 hours.

To reduce the risk of spreading flu:

• wash your hands often with warm water and soap
• cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze (if you do not have a tissue, cough or sneeze into the bend of your elbow, not into your hand)
• bin used tissues as quickly as possible

Try to stay at home and avoid contact with other people if you have a high temperature or you do not feel well enough to do your normal activities.

The children's flu vaccine is usually given as a quick and painless nasal spray in each nostril.

Children who cannot have the nasal spray vaccine will get a different flu vaccine, given as an injection into the upper arm or thigh.

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The children's flu vaccine aims to protect children against the most common types of flu viruses.

There's still a chance your child might get flu after getting vaccinated, but they're less likely to get seriously ill or need to go to hospital.

The vaccine usually takes up to 14 days to work.

Protection from the flu vaccine goes down over time and the types of flu the vaccine protects against are updated each year. This is why it's important to get the flu vaccine every year.