The vaccination hub at an east London hospital that offered Covid and flu jabs has closed down due to reduced demand.

King George Hospital, in Barley Road, Goodmayes, opened the hub two years ago during the second Covid wave.

More than 138,000 jabs were given at the centre and the vaccination team also visited vulnerable residents at care homes and schools.

They held pop-up sessions in libraries and a Tesco car park and gave polio and monkey pox vaccines while carrying out special sessions for cancer patients.

The centre has now shut its doors to the public, with staff members saying they have become like a family.

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Taz Milbank, senior clinical lead for vaccinations, was at the hub from the start.

She said: “Things were very different when we first opened. We’d have people queueing around the block for their vaccine who would be so grateful they’d be crying.

“I’m dual trained as a nurse and midwife but I felt a bit useless at the start of the pandemic. This gave me a purpose and I’m so proud of everything we achieved.”

Taz also got a chance to join a band at the NHS trust and was lead singer of the Pfizer Chiefs.

Romford Recorder: Pfizer Chiefs – the band which Taz formed with colleaguesPfizer Chiefs – the band which Taz formed with colleagues (Image: Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust)

The hub closed late last month because of "lessening demand", a spokesperson for Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust (BHRUT) said.

BHRUT also runs Queen's Hospital and the Romford site's vaccination hub shut in May 2021.

Margo McFarlane, 74, a nurse who retired in 2010 but came back to help with the vaccination effort, called the King George hub a "fun place to be".

She added: “When the vaccine came out, everyone was desperate to have it. It was this thing which was going to help us get back to normal life, holidays and seeing family. And it has."

Margo, who has four grandchildren, will go back to her retirement.

Romford Recorder: Nurse Margo McFarlane, 74, in action at the vaccination hubNurse Margo McFarlane, 74, in action at the vaccination hub (Image: Barking, Havering and Redbridge University Hospitals NHS Trust)

Operational manager Karena Roberts, who usually works in finance, said she was sad to see the hub close.

She said: “It’s a story to tell the grandchildren, being part of history. I’ve enjoyed it and learned so many new skills."