Results of Herefordshire’s latest Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment now published

The Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) report was published on 1 October 2025. Its aim was to understand and review NHS pharmaceutical services provided to local people, whether these meet their needs or if there are any potential gaps. Wider PNA recommendations also ensure that current and future services are of good quality, are accessible and inclusive and provide good use of resources in the areas of greatest need.

Overall, the number and spread of pharmacies and dispensing GP practices in Herefordshire was found to be sufficient for delivery of essential services, with no gaps being identified.

PNAs must be produced by Health and Wellbeing Boards every three years and this is the fourth PNA that has been produced in the county. It was developed following the engagement and involvement of key stakeholders via formation of a working group. This group met regularly and comprised representatives from Herefordshire Council, NHS Herefordshire and Worcestershire, Herefordshire Local Pharmaceutical Committee, Herefordshire Local Medical Committee (representing Herefordshire GPs) and Herefordshire Healthwatch.

A draft of the PNA was sent to stakeholders during a mandatory 60-day public consultation period (which ran from 4 July-2 September 2025).  Input was also sought through questionnaires to individuals and organisations and the establishment of focus groups made up of under-represented populations.

You can read the report here but amongst the main conclusions are:

• There are the same total number of pharmacies (27) and dispensing practices (10) as 2022, when the last PNA was published.
• No gaps have been identified in terms of access and travel times for essential services and there is good overall coverage of advanced services (eg Pharmacy First, Vaccinations and emergency contraception).
• There have been some small reductions in out-of-hours provision (weekday evenings and weekends), such that cover after 7pm is now limited to a single pharmacy in Hereford City.
• There are some geographical differences in which advanced services are provided, such as identifying high blood pressure. This is particularly important between more deprived and affluent areas.
• Demand on pharmacies in Herefordshire is likely to increase due to our ageing population and higher levels of disease management.
• Overall, there are good overall levels of public satisfaction with pharmaceutical services in the county, however awareness and public confidence may be limiting uptake.

Several recommendations are made in the PNA including:

• Increase public confidence, awareness and uptake of pharmacy services, particularly Pharmacy First.
• Consideration for commissioning a rota to allow for increased out-of-hours provision beyond 7pm during weekday evenings.
• Aim to ensure Hypertension Case Finding and Smoking Cessation services are provided within areas of greatest need.
• Consideration of the environment, crowding and queuing systems within community pharmacies, to allow for greater customer privacy and inclusivity.

Councillor Carole Gandy, Cabinet Member for Adults, Health and Wellbeing said:

Pharmacies, including community pharmacies and those based within dispensing GP practices, play an important part in meeting our population’s health needs. This is not only because of their traditional dispensing role, but increasingly by offering advice for a range of minor ailments through the Pharmacy First scheme, and their role in preventative healthcare and early diagnosis of serious illness, such as cancers.

I welcome the findings of this latest PNA in helping us to understand how our pharmacies are keeping up with our local population’s needs and determining what we will need in the future.

Zoe Clifford, Director of Public Health at Herefordshire Council, said:

Pharmacies are increasingly vital to improving the health of the population. In addition to their traditional roles, they also provide health and wellbeing advice, identify key disease risks such as high blood pressure and support healthy behaviours like quitting smoking.

I welcome this report as it ensures both that these needs are being met and allows a greater understanding of how we can continue to improve services in partnership with community pharmacy and local dispensing GP Practices.