The Pharmacy Guy · England · Part 3
Independent prescribing: is it worth it for pharmacy owners?
Independent prescribing is changing the conversation for pharmacy owners. My question is: how do we build a service we can safely deliver?
My answer
There is a business opportunity, but a prescribing qualification alone does not create a viable service. Owners need competent clinicians, mentoring, workable systems and enough patient demand to cover the cost of delivering care properly.
That is my assessment of the opportunity. NHS service eligibility and funding are separate matters, set out in the official sources below.
Watch the original
The qualification is only the beginning.
In my Part 3 video, I talk about portfolios, support for prescribers and the business side of delivering these services.
Originally published 12 July 2026. Substantially updated following September’s announcement, using my Part 3 video. This replaces the earlier discussion of the expected rollout and conditions.
What has changed for NHS pharmacy prescribing?
NHS England’s 10 September 2026 announcement describes five additional prescribing pathways, with an initial limited group of prescribing pharmacies starting in autumn 2026. Employing a pharmacist with a prescribing qualification allows a pharmacy to apply; participation is not automatic. The extension covers specified Pharmacy First pathways and contraception, rather than unrestricted prescribing for every minor illness. Read the announcement and notes to editors.
The five additions concern migraine, childhood seasonal rhinitis, adult outer-ear infection, acne, and certain skin infections including scabies. Age and clinical eligibility limits matter: use the detailed pathway requirements when planning a service, rather than the shorthand in a headline.
For me, the business question is what sits behind that application. Can you actually support the person who is going to deliver the consultations?
Fit for practice is only the starting point
“It’s not going to be enough for you to literally just expect pharmacists to deliver it because you have to be fit for delivery.”— From my Part 3 video
That is the distinction I keep coming back to. Being qualified matters. So does the environment in which you ask that clinician to work. A pharmacy needs a practical answer when a prescriber reaches the edge of their competence, needs a second opinion or identifies a patient who needs another service.
NHS England’s professional assurance framework addresses both professional standards and readiness to deliver services. It covers scope, appropriate indemnity, operating procedures and clinical supervision. For prescribing practice, it describes regular support from a named experienced clinician and at least annual appraisal. Read the professional assurance framework.
My advice to owners is to turn that into the working week. Who provides support? When is time protected for it? How does the prescriber access it during a difficult consultation? A policy folder cannot answer those questions on its own.
A portfolio should show how you practise
In the video, I ask pharmacists to develop their portfolio. The point is to make your development visible: the decisions you have reflected on, feedback you have acted on and areas where you still need support.
The NHS framework recommends keeping a professional portfolio and explains that this is not itself a GPhC-mandated requirement. Useful evidence can include reflections, clinical feedback and decisions not to prescribe. See the framework’s section on individual practitioners.
I would use it as the basis for a useful conversation with a supervisor, rather than a collection of certificates. My guide to putting a competency into your portfolio develops that point.
Mentoring needs to be part of the plan
I also talk about access to a multidisciplinary team. Owners should think about the support their pharmacists need, including where another clinician’s expertise would help. That support needs to be accessible in practice.
My concern is the expectation that a newly qualified prescriber should simply take on a service and manage everything. If you are asking someone to take on clinical responsibility, make space for their development. I discuss the wider systems in my community pharmacy prescribing governance guide.
Prescribing income is not the same as profit
My view in the video is that the revenue has to be weighed against the risk and work involved. I do not see this as a straightforward service to add without considering the resources it needs.
The 2026/27 community pharmacy contract agreement sets out the national prescribing service’s funding arrangements. Use those arrangements, the applicable service specification and your own costs to build a business case. A consultation payment by itself tells you very little about the return.
Clinical time + documentation + supervision + training + administration + premises and systems + appropriate cover.
Then ask what happens to the rest of the pharmacy while that consultation takes place. Who covers the workload? How much time is needed afterwards? What happens if demand takes longer to build than you expect?
These are planning questions, not a prediction of anybody’s profit. A service that looks attractive when every appointment is filled can look very different when the diary is quiet or consultations need more time.
Patient access matters as much as the offer
I am positive about the opportunity for pharmacists who develop their skills and can communicate their services well. But marketing has to reflect what the pharmacy is actually ready and approved to provide.
Patients need clear information about who can use the service, how to access it and when another route is appropriate. Building demand for a service you cannot yet deliver is not a useful business strategy. Build the clinical capacity and the patient journey together.
Five questions I would ask before building the service
- Who will prescribe, and within what scope? Be specific about the clinician’s competence and the service they will deliver.
- Who will support that prescriber? Identify supervision, mentoring and a practical route to a second opinion.
- How will you evidence readiness? Bring together the relevant training, portfolio evidence, procedures and service requirements.
- Does the business case include the whole workload? Account for work outside the consultation and the effect on the rest of the team.
- How will eligible patients find and access the service? Plan a clear route in, without promising access before participation is confirmed.
This is a starting point for planning, not the NHS application checklist. If you are looking at participation, check the current requirements with your ICB and read my guide to getting on your ICB’s prescribing list.
Developing your prescribing skills and support
As I say in the video, get in touch if you want to develop your skills, discuss a portfolio or explore mentoring support. If you own a pharmacy, we can discuss the support your team needs to deliver a service.
Through MEDLRN, you can explore clinical CPD in Dermatology and Minor Illness, alongside courses in ADHD, Weight Management, Mental Health and TRT. Choose training that is relevant to the scope you are developing. Those course areas are not a list of services authorised by this NHS announcement.
Explore MEDLRN courses ↗ Ask about training or mentoring ↗
Commercial disclosure: I offer training and support through MEDLRN. CPD does not confer a prescribing qualification, extend competence automatically or grant NHS service approval.
Questions pharmacists and owners ask
Does employing an independent prescriber guarantee NHS service approval?
No. The announcement says pharmacies employing a prescribing-qualified pharmacist can apply. Approval and readiness are separate; the first group in 2026/27 is limited. NHS England’s notes to editors explain the rollout.
Does a CPD course make me an independent prescriber?
No. CPD can support professional development within your scope. It does not replace an approved prescribing qualification or the relevant service requirements.
Will prescribing make my pharmacy more profitable?
It depends on demand, delivery costs, capacity and the applicable funding. My view is that there is an opportunity, but it needs a realistic business case and support for the clinicians doing the work.
Read the original video transcript
Part 3: Independent prescribing and the business model. Transcribed from my edited video; paragraph breaks added for readability.
Open the transcript
But how do we make sure that we're safe? How do we make sure that you can implement this into your practice? And if you're a business owner, this is important. If you own a pharmacy or you want to essentially start your prescribing, this becomes quite important. you need to make sure that you have developed your portfolio. And So if you're interested in the pharmacist to develop a digital portfolio, get in touch. Pharmacists owners, you're going to have to not only get policies and procedures in place, right? But you're equally going to have to have mentoring for these pharmacists. It's not going to be enough for you to literally just expect pharmacists to deliver it because you have to be fit for delivery. So if you want access to a multidisciplinary team, mentoring, you can get in touch if you don't have your own prescribers, more than happy to help you. In terms of the revenue side of things, it was never going to be that great for the risk that we have to take So it's not going to be that straightforward to implement these services. So training is going to be important, working within scope is going to be important. But I think for those of us who can really market ourselves, get access to patients, I think you're going to be extremely well So if you're a pharmacist, you want to get in touch, develop yourself, develop your skills, you want to become a prescriber, get in touch, happy to help. But this is the future. As always folks, subscribe, like and share. Thank you for watching.
Faheem Ahmed
Pharmacist, independent prescriber, educator and the voice behind The Pharmacy Guy. I support clinicians and pharmacy teams through teaching, mentoring and consultancy.
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