More than 14 per cent of care home staff in Cambridgeshire who are not fully vaccinated face losing their jobs in five weeks' time.

Some 784 workers in the county have currently not been double vaccinaed and 340 (six per cent) are still yet to get their first dose of the Covid vaccine, according to NHS England data.

There are 5,534 care home workers employed in Cambridgeshire.

Care home staff in England were told to have their first Covid jab by the end of September 16 to meet the Government’s deadline for full vaccination of November 11.

After November 11, staff will be excluded from working in care homes if they are not fully vaccinated.

Nationally, 42,698 out of 553,891 eligible staff (eight per cent) had not received a first dose by September 19.

It comes as Heath Secretary Savid Javid told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme this weekend, that care home workers who won’t get vaccinated should “get out and get another job”.

He warned that he is not prepared to “pause” the requirement for them to be fully vaccinated by November 11, amid concerns significant numbers are reluctant to get the jab.

When asked how the country would cope with staff shortages if tens of thousands of care workers quit, Mr Javid said: “There are other people…who will come forward.”

Care England, which represents providers, warned last month that the sector was “at breaking point” over recruitment and retention – even before the loss of unvaccinated workers.

Rachel Harrison, national officer of the GMB union, which represents some care staff, said bosses were now having to think about how to keep residents safe.

She said: "Forced vaccination of our embattled care workers is an insensitive and cruel way to address vaccine hesitancy."

The double-vaccine rule also applies to visitors to care homes, with unvaccinated people set to be banned from entering from November 11.

Readers were keen to share their views on the debate on social media in recent weeks.

While some believed to be jabbed was a “duty of care” others argued that it should remain a personal choice.