More than 8,000 meningitis B vaccines have been handed out since the outbreak in Kent while the number of cases is up to 34 from 29.
Hundreds of students and other eligible people queued to receive vaccines and antibiotics on Saturday, and more are expected to be waiting outside the clinics when they reopen on Sunday morning.
Some 23 cases have been confirmed and 11 more “remain under investigation”, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said in an update on Saturday.
Eighteen of the 23 confirmed cases are meningitis B and all cases have required hospital admission.
A further update is expected from the UKHSA on Sunday morning.
Staff at the University of Kent campus clinic in Canterbury said on Saturday that the vaccine rollout had become a “slick operation” as queues and waiting times were significantly shorter than during the week.
The Canterbury site opened at 9am, with those close to the front saying they had been waiting since 7am, and one reportedly claiming to have waited since closer to 5am.
The queue, mostly made up of young people wearing masks and big coats, appeared to be moving much faster than in previous days and dropped to around 15 by about 11am.
Students who arrived when the site opened were at the front of the queue within an hour and 15 minutes, compared with reported four-hour waits on Friday.
Faversham Health Centre had a short queue of around 20 people by around midday on Saturday despite having had a line outside from 8am.
NHS Kent and Medway, which is in charge of the rollout, said it moved staff to focus on sites with the longest wait times during the week.
A spokesperson said: “Our teams have been working overtime this weekend and into the evenings during the week to deliver antibiotic and vaccine clinics as fast as possible.”
According to the trust, 8,002 vaccines had been administered and 12,157 antibiotics handed out in Kent by 5.55pm on Saturday.
Students waiting at the Canterbury site in the morning stressed the importance of protecting themselves and others.
Maria, 22, who studies drama and theatre, said: “I think it’s important to make sure we protect ourselves because obviously there’s been some deaths and people in hospital.
“I think all of us are quite worried at the moment so it’s better that we all get it.”
Another student, 20-year-old Bradley, who studies sport and exercise science, said he had been waiting since before the clinic opened on Saturday morning.
He said: “I’m just getting the vaccine, getting it done. Trying to protect myself and people around me. I think it’s very important that we all get it done as soon as possible.”
There are six clinics across the county providing antibiotics and vaccines for eligible people.
Two students have died in the outbreak: 18-year-old Juliette Kenny, who was described by her family as “fit, healthy and strong” before her death, and a University of Kent student.
Dr Ben Rush, consultant in communicable disease control at the UKHSA, said: “It’s reassuring to have seen so many eligible young people come forward for antibiotics and vaccination and we’d like to thank everyone involved in this effort so far.”
Kent County Council’s director of public health, Dr Anjan Ghosh, warned on Friday that “small household, sporadic clusters” could appear in other parts of the UK as students who have travelled away from Kent “incubate” the bug.
But he said these would be “containable” and stressed the risk of infection between individuals is low.
Dr Ghosh said it was the “most likely” scenario but outlined two other possibilities: the outbreak remaining contained in Kent, and the “worst-case scenario” – which he said is “highly unlikely” – of another cluster outside Kent.
