New figures reveal Wyndham has the lowest immunisation rate in the western suburbs, with 8 per cent of children not vaccinated by the time they start school.
Melton had the highest proportion of fully immunised five-year-olds: 94.34 per cent.
A state government report card released last week showed 93 per cent of Victorian children were immunised before starting school this year. It wants to increase the figure to 95 per cent by 2015.
Health Minister David Davis said immunisation played a crucial role in public health.
“Starting school means that children are in contact with a larger number of people, which can expose them to a range of potentially dangerous diseases, so making sure they are fully immunised is the best protection we can give them,” he said.
South Western Melbourne Medicare Local chief executive Linda Kensington said Wyndham’s below-average immunisation rate could be attributed to busy parents forgetting immunisation dates and migrant families being unfamiliar with the Australian system.
Western suburbs mum Tasha David said parents had the right to chose whether they vaccinated their children.
The mother-of-eight, a member of an anti-immunisation group, vaccinated her six eldest children but chose not to immunise the other two.
Ms David said she decided not to vaccinate her two youngest children after those who had been vaccinated developed behavioural and learning problems.
“It was a clear-cut decision for us. The two who are unvaccinated are completely healthy,” she said.
Australian Academy of Science president Suzanne Cory urged parents to base their immunisation decisions on the best scientific evidence.
Professor Cory said studies had ruled out links between vaccinations and health problems such as autism.
