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This month's news from the National Pharmacy Association...

Join the NPA WhatsApp Community!

We’re excited to launch the NPA WhatsApp Community, designed to make it easier for

you to connect with other members, share experiences, and access timely updates

from the NPA.

• More personalised, direct updates from the NPA

• NPA Members can join nation-specific groups (England, Scotland, Wales, Northern

Ireland) for tailored discussions

• Peer-to-peer communication with fellow pharmacy owners and teams (coming soon).

• Dedicated topic specific groups and much more...

GPhC revalidation update

From 1 January 2026, pharmacists and pharmacy technicians can select any of the nine standards for pharmacy professionals for their revalidation refl ective account. See pharmacyregulation.org

Forging ties across primary care

We joined NPA colleagues in a great conversation with our counterparts at the Royal College of GPs, after meeting with the British Medical Association.

Good, constructive relations between community pharmacies and GPs are the foundation on which government reforms will rest. We’ve got to get this right, so we’re committed to working with our stakeholders on your behalf to improve professional relationships wherever we can.

We’re proud to be working with Cogora, publishers of Pulse, on a major new event bringing pharmacists and

GPs together and forging closer working ties across primary care. We hope this two-day conference in June

2026 will offer practical support that will be vital for everyone’s business as the local  NHS changes.

21-22 June 2026

Birmingham - Save the date!

Bringing together primary care professionals for two days of real-world learning, implementable ideas, and

meaningful relationship building. Be there!

Mission to tackle health inequalities

The NPA has published a report of a high-level roundtable meeting on health inequalities – and called on the government and NHS to support pharmacy-based public health services in line with the aspirations of the 10 Year Health Plan for England.

‘Our Mission to Tackle Health Inequalities’ follows a meeting held in April and chaired by Professor Maggie Rae, former president of the faculty of public health. It is both a commitment by community pharmacy to help tackle health inequalities and an appeal for targeted investment by the government and local commissioners.

Bold action

Calling for bold action that builds on interventions we know work well, the report cites smoking cessation, sexual health, vaccinations and health checks as areas for growth.

The report concludes: “Collectively, we are on a mission to tackle health inequalities, which for too long have been allowed to fester in society and failed the people who need help the most.”

Flu, Covid and weight loss medications

Do you have the right level of cover for your stock?

With the flu and Covid vaccination service in full swing, and more pharmacies offering weight loss services, it’s time to check you have the correct level of cover for your stock and that your fridge is in good working order.

Customers who have a Pharmacover or Commercial Combined policy with NPA Insurance already benefit from an automatic 25 per cent seasonal uplift to Stock and Deterioration of Stock (fridge lines) sum insured between October and January.

However, if you have a large delivery of expensive vaccines or weight loss medication into the pharmacy, the sum insured might no be enough. Lisa Banks, MD of Pharmacy Insurance explains: “I recommend that you check your policy schedule to see if your current amount of cover is sufficient with the automatic 25 per cent seasonal uplift and, if not, contact our friendly Insurance Service Centre, who will be able to increase your cover for the flu season.

One member contacted us recently because they were taking delivery of £80,000 of flu vaccinations for the four-month period and nearly £250,000 of weight loss medication.

Clearly the automatic 25 per cent uplift was not enough, and we were able to o er cover for this increase in stock for a very reasonable additional premium.

“As the NPA’s insurance company, we pride ourselves on our ability to adapt and fl ex to pharmacies’ ever-changing needs. Vaccination services are now a core part of community pharmacy, and we want to ensure that our generalinsurance cover is agileand allows for the fl uctuations in pharmacy stock at this busy time.”

NEW AND POPULAR NPA RESOURCES

Available on the NPA Membership Hub

Hub and spoke

From 1 October 2025, new legislation is in place allowing hub and spoke dispensing between pharmacies owned by different legal entities - known as inter company hub and spoke. We have created new resources including key considerations/ checklist for implementation, a risk assessment template, template SOPs and FAQs. Our resources are available on the ‘Hub and spoke’ hub on the NPA Membership Hub.

If you are looking to provide a hub and spoke arrangement, please contact membersupport@ npa.co.uk to inform them of your intention, so that we can ensure adequate indemnity arrangements are in place.

Flu

We have collated the most common member queries about the inadvertent administration of the incorrect vaccine into an easy-to read FAQs document.

Patient safety

• MSO report Q3 2025 - (England)

• LASA poster and list - (UK)

• MHRA Yellow Card Toolkit. A great resource which includes posters, videos, patient leafl ets,social media and digital adverts for community pharmacies to use. https://yellowcard.mhra.gov.uk

DBS

Enhanced DBS checks must be undertaken for foundation year trainees. Where trainees are working across multiple practice settings, the lead employer would be responsible. Read our new Knowledge article on the NPA Member Hub.

NMS

Following the expansion of the New Medicine Service on 29 October 2025, the NPA NMS hub and resources have been updated to refl ect the updated NMS service specification. These materials are designed to support you and your team in delivering the service in line with the revised Service Specification and the updated NMS Eligible Drug List.

Key changes

New eligible condition:

• Depression (in patients 18 years of age) has been added.

• No new mandatory training is required in relation to the depression therapeutic area, though mental health consultation training is encouraged.

NMS Eligible Drug List have been updated to:

• Remove discontinued medicines, hospital specialist–only medicines, and drugs with very low community prescribing levels.

• Add newer medicines approved since the last review.

• Consultation timing windows are changing:

• Intervention: 7 to 14 days after the prescription

• Follow-up: 14 to 21 days (with some exceptions)

• Sub-contracting is not allowed under the service

• IT systems need to be updated to support these changes

• DSPs are not permitted to provide face-to-face NMS consultations

• Clarification on record retention: records should be retained for three years following the conclusion of the service for PPV purposes and in line with the Records Management Code of Practice for Health and Social Care for all relevantrecords

• Quarterly submission: this wasdiscontinued.

PCS

On 29 October 2025, updates to the NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service (PCS) came into effect. The PCS has been expanded to include the provision of oral emergency contraception. Our updated resources are on the NPA Membership Hub.

Maximise your NPA membership

NPA membership is more than a subscription – it’s an investment in your success!

To ensure you are maximising your NPA membership, we want to highlight some of the lesser-known ways your NPA membership works harder for you.

Beyond core services like training, advice, and HR, health and safety support, here are several extra benefi ts designed to help your pharmacy grow, connect, and save.

Insights at your fingertips

Every month, members receive a Local Market Insights Report straight to their inbox. These reports provide a clear snapshot of your pharmacy’s performance across key metrics – from prescription item growth to GP practice engagement and service delivery.

You’ll also see how you compare with local competitors and industry benchmarks, helping you identify strengths and areas for improvement. With actionable insights on dispensing trends and service claims, these reports make it easier to optimise operations, support patient care, and staycompetitive.

Access to Trusted Partners

Running a successful pharmacy usually means juggling many business functions – from staffing and finance to equipment and utilities. That’s why we’ve built a network of over 40 carefully vetted Trusted Partners. Each partner has been chosen for their reliability, reputation, and expertise, giving you confidence that you’re working with suppliers who understand pharmacy.

NPA Connects: Community-Powered Marketing

Marketing can be time-consuming and costly – but with NPA Connects, members can save time, money, and effort. By joining forces with other members, you benefit from greater purchasing power and reduced costs, while gaining access to easy-to-use tools for:

• Direct mail and social media campaigns

• Door drops and digital advertising

• In-store posters, banners, and more.

It’s a simple, effective way to raise awareness, attract new customers, and strengthen your local presence.

Cashback Opportunities

Membership doesn’t just give you access to services – it also gives money back. Members can earn cashback in several ways, including:

• Referring new members

• Completing Level 3 Pharmacy Technician training

• Completing Level 2 courses.

Upcoming bank holiday reminder

Community pharmacies in England, Northern Ireland and Wales may close on designated bank holidays, as permitted under the relevant pharmaceutical regulations in each country, unless they are specifically directed to open by NHS England, the Strategic Planning and Performance Group (SPPG) or the Local HealthBoard.

In Scotland, pharmacies must notify their local NHS Health Board pharmacy o ce of any planned bank-holiday closures, in line with the NHS (Pharmaceutical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2009.

Pharmacy teams are advised to check all controlled drug (CD) prescriptions in advance to ensure they are clinically appropriate and legally valid for dispensing, and to update their pharmacies’ profi les as required, ahead of the Christmas bank holidays.

Benefits of NPA membership

The NPA is constantly adding value to its membership o er. For example, did you know that NPA members can now access enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks for employers at a discounted rate? If you are an NPA member, please make the most of your membership by leafing through the brochure on the NPA Membership hub and using the wide range of services on offer.

Build a resilient business with Future Pharmacy

A reminder that the NPA is providing practical, actionable advice on how to make your pharmacy business stronger today and resilient for the big changes that are coming in our sector. Our Future Pharmacy Network has detailed guides to business change, setting up private and NHS services, and a wealth of exclusive insight into what the public wants and needs frompharmacy.

It is all free to download and read when convenientforyou. We’re excited to open up our latest module: Developing yourteam. This module includes a full leadership development course available for NPA members at no cost.

It also includes a short video to walk you through how to get the most out of the leadershipcourse. www.npa.co.uk/campaigns/future-pharmacy-network/

Integrated NHS services in Northern Ireland

It was fascinating to see the Northern Ireland government’s consultation on neighbourhood services which echoes the move towards integrated NHS neighbourhood services in England.

The health minister plans to develop a new model by March which “will see CommunityPharmacy, GPs and their Federations, Voluntary and Community organisations, Trusts, independent providers, other statutory bodies and Local Government working closely together in formal partnership to provide integrated care in Northern Ireland”.

Pharmacist prescribing inScotland

The Scottish government’s commitment to extending NHS pharmacy prescribing services is good news and potentially a significant step forward for community pharmacy.

A prescribing activity remuneration pothas been introduced, with no minimum threshold and additional flexibility to widen provision of the service.

We’ll monitor the changes closely to assess their impact on contractors, NHS and patients and will utilise the increasednumbers of pharmacist prescribers nextyear. Full details are in the Scottish government circular PCA (P) (2025) 24.

NHS Pathology Review: Building a role for NHS Community Pharmacy

Much of the NPA’s influencing work is behind the scenes and long term in scope – but it’s no less important for that. For example, you may not be aware that the NPA has instigated a national working group on NHS Point-of-Care Testing diagnostics.

We’re working with our think tank partner PPP to develop a practical commissioning toolkit, enabling an expansion in the role of community pharmacy in this arena. We see opportunities to:

• Leverage the day-to-day high volume touchpoint across the national community pharmacy network, to convert our health interaction footfall and ‘Make Every Contact Count’ (MECC).

• Case find infections (e.g. sexual health, Hepatitis) and conditions (e.g. CVD, respiratory)

• Get the regular ‘bloods’ of long term condition markers.

The NPA’s work in this sphere coincides with a review by the Institute of Biomedical Science on Pathology in England, which has the support of NHS England. It’s just one of numerous case-building programmes we are undertaking on behalf of our members and the wider pharmacy world.

Ask Your Pharmacist Week

A round of applause for everyone who participated in this year’s Ask Your Pharmacist week – from pharmacy teams and patient groups to local authorities, GPs and NHS organisations.

If you wish, you can still use our free campaign materials to promote pharmacy services to your local community and nationwide. www.npa.co.uk/campaigns/ask-your-pharmacist-week-2025/