The change comes after the outbreak of measles in the borough of Enfield, where there have been 50 confirmed cases of the virus.
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The Department of Health and Social Care has announced it will be providing “additional support” to GPs to protect children from life‑threatening diseases, amid an outbreak of measles in north London.
Changes to the GP contract could see thousands of children across the country protected from “deadly and highly infectious diseases”, according to the department.
The change comes after the outbreak of measles in the borough of Enfield, where there have been 50 confirmed cases of the virus up to February 16, according to the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA).
The outbreak is mostly affecting unvaccinated children.
The DHSC said that in the worst cases children have found themselves in hospital fighting “a serious but preventable disease”.
Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Wes Streeting said the outbreak is "entirely preventable" and the measures would reduce the risk of further issues.
“Vaccinations are safe and they save lives.
“The return of diseases we thought we’d defeated, with children in hospital as a result, is entirely preventable."
He went on to say the investment would help GPs to protect children, and help to prevent further outbreaks like the one in Enfield.
“Every child deserves a healthy, happy start to life.”
The updated GP contract for 2026/27, which is due to be unveiled this week, will include additional help for GPs to “save young lives and shield families from preventable illness”.
This will be done by strengthening vaccination delivery in areas where it is needed most, according to the DHSC.
Under the current system, only GP practices that are hitting high vaccination rate targets earn additional incentive payments.
In communities with lower vaccination rates, practices are often “missing out” on earning additional payments, even when they are recording year-on-year improvements in vaccination rates.
The DHSC said the next GP contract will “help change this by providing improvement incentives that recognise those practices making progress”.
It said these additional resources can be used to “reinvest in outreach” and to “follow up with families with unvaccinated children”, and will provide GPs with the resources they need to help protect children who are currently missing out.
They said they hope to "reduce health inequalities that leave some babies at far greater risk than others simply because of where they live”.
Ruth Rankine, director of the Primary Care Network and neighbourhood lead at the NHS Confederation and NHS Providers, said: “Primary care leaders welcome this announcement and see it as a fair and supportive approach for general practice, particularly for those working in communities with high levels of unmet need.
“Increasing childhood vaccination uptake can be challenging, especially in areas where coverage has fallen and the risk of outbreaks has risen, so additional support for practices to work with families will be vital in helping protect babies and children from serious, preventable diseases."
The outbreak of measles comes after the World Health Organisation said that the UK is no longer considered to have eliminated measles.