A single dose of a coronavirus vaccine has given substantial protection to elderly care home residents in England, researchers have said.

A study, led by researchers from University College London (UCL), found a single dose of either AstraZeneca/Oxford or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine prevented 56 per cent of coronavirus infections after four weeks.

The study also found that the vaccines prevented 62 per cent of infections after five weeks.

It further found evidence suggesting that contraction of the virus may be less infectious after people have had the vaccine.

Samples showed that positive coronavirus tests 28 days after the first dose contained less viral material.

Meanwhile people who had previously contracted the virus were also found to have not much difference in terms of levels of protection after they were jabbed.

However, only 11 per cent of participants who were jabbed also were previously infected with the virus, the researchers said, adding that more research was required into the vaccines’ efficacy for them.

Laura Shallcross, a doctor who is part of UCL Institute of Health Informatics that led the study, said the research was gathered when a more infectious variant of coronavirus, the UK variant, was prevalent in care homes.

Ms Shallcross therefore said the vaccines were believed to be protected against it.