Why are children in the UK at risk of serious strep A infections?

The UK Health Security Agency issued a rare alert on Friday,
telling parents to look out for signs of strep A infection in their
children. Since September, eight children in England and Wales have
died after becoming unwell with Group A streptococci bacteria.
Typically causing illnesses like skin infections, tonsillitis or
scarlet fever, very occasionally strep A can become a
life-threatening, invasive disease. But why are we seeing such a
steep rise in cases in the UK this year? Madeleine Finlay speaks to
Chrissie Jones, associate professor of paediatric infection at the
University of Southampton, about the significance of this outbreak
and the symptoms to be aware of, and asks Shiranee Sriskandan,
professor of infectious diseases at Imperial College London, about
how the bacteria can evade our immune systems and whether we may
one day have a vaccine.. Help support our independent journalism at
theguardian.com/sciencepod