We are delighted to welcome Professor Dame Jenny Harries DBE DL, former Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England, as non-executive as the new Chair of Community Pharmacy England (CPE).

Professor Dame Jenny Harris brings a wealth of experience and worked as the Director of Public Health for Norfolk. We look forward to her leadership and the positive impact she will bring to Community Pharmacy across England.

Timings for commencement of CPCF changes announced.

Actions for pharmacy owners and their teams.

With changes to Community Pharmacy Contractual Framework (CPCF) services on the horizon, pharmacy owners are encouraged to review the revised service documentation for any services they provide, if they have not already done so.

It is equally important that all pharmacy staff delivering these services have read the draft documentation, are fully aware of the upcoming changes, and are confident in their competence to provide the updated services from the relevant commencement dates.

Wednesday 1st October 2025

Pharmacy First Clinical Pathways revised. The provisional date for commencement of use of the new clinical pathways and PGDs DRAFT versions of the clinical pathways and PGDs

Wednesday 29th October 2025

Pharmacy Contraception Service (PCS) the PCS will expand to include the provision of oral emergency contraception (EC). In addition, the service will be updated to allow pharmacy technicians to provide the service from that day. DRAFT documents from the NHSBSA website

Wednesday 29th October 2025

New Medicine Service the NMS will expand to include depression as an eligible therapeutic area. This will be reflected in the updated service specification and NMS Eligible Drug List. DRAFT revised service specification and drug list from the NHSBSA website

Invitation to Autumn Service Updates Webinar – Tuesday 23rd September

We’re inviting all Pharmacy teams to join us for a live webinar on Tuesday, 23rd September 7:30pm to review and discuss important service updates coming this Autumn.

This session will cover upcoming changes, provide practical guidance, and give you the opportunity to ask questions so you’re fully prepared for the busy months ahead. Don’t miss this chance to stay informed, support your patients with confidence, and make the best use of your whole team.

To book your place at this event, click here. 

Community Pharmacy Norfolk & Suffolk Annual General Meeting 2025

Wednesday, 17th September 2025, at Diss Business Hub, Hopper Way, Diss, IP22 4GT, at 3 pm.

Further information and booking details can be seen here.

Preparing for Flu Vaccinations 2025-26

Pregnant Women are eligible for vaccination from Monday 1st September 2025.

All other Adults can be vaccinated from Wednesday 1st October 2025.

Children - Pharmacies who signed up before Sunday 31st August will be able to provide the Children’s Flu Service from Wednesday 1st October 2025. Registration is still possible, but the provision of the centrally procured vaccine will be received after the starting date for the service.

Resources

Adult Flu Vaccination Service

Children’s Flu Service

PGDs

On-demand webinars

Children's Flu vaccination posters

Flu vaccines 2025 to 2026 poster

Leaflets to download or order

Offsite Vaccinations

If you are intending to offer off-site (e.g. in care homes or patient homes) vaccinations you will need to complete this form If you have any problems completing the form contact england.eoe-vacprg@nhs.net

The Flu campaign end date will be 31st March 2026

Claims will not be reimbursed for vaccines given outside these date.

Service funding remains unchanged.

Manage your Appointments (MYA)

This new management system interacts with National Booking System and replaces Qflow as the system that enables sites to create and manage appointment availability. Participating sites will be able to post flu and COVID-19 vaccination appointments on Manage your appointments from Thursday 18th August 2025, in preparation for the public to make bookings from Monday 1st September 2025 and for vaccination from Wednesday 1st October 2025. September hosts a number of Manage Your Appointments on NBS training webinars. Book here.

Pharmacy flu vaccination service finder information
The Flu Pharmacy Finder will feature new functionality to enable the public to Find a pharmacy that offers NHS flu vaccinations for adults (aged 18 years and older) or children (aged 2-3-years-old) as either a walk-in or booked appointment. More information can be found here.  

PQS Publication Of Clinical Audit

NHS England has launched the Pharmacy Quality Scheme (PQS) on Antimicrobial Stewardship for Pharmacy First consultations.

Pharmacy teams must complete the audit and share anonymized data with NHS England by March 31st, 2026.

Audits must occur between September 1, 2025, and February 3, 2026, with a minimum of 10 patients over four or eight weeks. Pharmacy owners must document the audit's start and end dates for the MYS portal.

View the audit on the NHSE website.

Pharmacy Quality Scheme

CPPE offer learning and assessments to support you in achieving criteria relating to the medicines optimisation and patient safety domains in the 2025/2026 version of the Pharmacy quality scheme.

Their PQS tracker can help you quickly determine which of their learning programmes and assessments you have completed within the specified timeframe (if applicable).

You can find more information about the PQS requirements in the Drug Tariff - Pharmacy Quality Scheme  on the NHSBSA website. Also CPE website  hosts a Pharmacy Quality Scheme - hub page. More CPPE Opportunities can be found here

Suffolk Pharmacies - NRT Supply Contract variation and Tobacco:

Suffolk County Council Public Health & Communities formally notify you of a variation to the existing Pharmacy NRT Supply Contract (GFPH483) dated 1st December 2023. In accordance with Clause A.4 of the contract terms and conditions, the contract will be extended for a further 12 months. The revised contract expiry date is 30th November 2026.
All other terms and conditions of the Contract will remain unchanged.
Please confirm your acceptance of this variation by completing the ‘Pharmacy NRT Supply – Contract Extension 2025-26’ template via Pharmoutcomes. Pharmacies that do not confirm acceptance via the Pharmoutcomes template will no longer be authorised to deliver the service after 30 November 2025. All pharmacies are invited to provide the Pharmacy NRT Supply Service you can find more details here.

Survey Deadline Sunday 7th September 2025

Sore throat point-of-care test for streptococcus

We have been asked to support a survey designed to provide a baseline assessment of readiness for change among community pharmacists, should a decision be taken in future to introduce point-of-care testing for streptococcus into sore throat patient pathways in England.

Your opinion would be very much welcomed and valued. The survey will be open for one week from Monday 1st September 2025 to midnight on Sunday 7th September. Participation is voluntary, should take no more than 5 minutes, and all responses are anonymous. Data are being collected by a post-graduate student at the University of Reading and a summary will be shared with NHS England.

Survey Link

Suffolk Pharmacies - Repeat Prescribing initiative

Community Pharmacies across Suffolk and North East Essex are being invited to take part in a new initiative aimed at improving the repeat prescribing process. The recently published Repeat Prescribing Toolkit, developed by the Royal Pharmaceutical Society and the Royal College of GPs, offers updated guidance for the first time in over 20 years. As part of an ICB-supported scheme, pharmacies can complete a self-assessment to help identify areas of good practice and potential challenges, with a £100 payment available upon submission. While participation is voluntary, the initiative encourages collaboration with local GP practices and aims to support safer, more efficient systems that benefit both patients and healthcare providers.

Full details of the initiative can be found here