Pharmacy First is expanding and I've seen the difference it can make in Blackpool
This summer, my Beyond the Prom tour took me to Lytham Road Pharmacy, where I met pharmacist Kevin Lu and his team and saw first-hand the work they do for patients across the area.
It's easy to think of a pharmacy as just somewhere you collect a prescription, but Kevin and his colleagues are doing far more than that and I want to make sure people in Blackpool South know what's on offer.
From Autumn, Pharmacy First is expanding to cover seven more common conditions, including migraines, acne, ear infections, rhinitis and scabies, on top of the seven it's covered since February 2024 – earache, impetigo, infected insect bites, shingles, sinusitis, sore throats and UTIs.
Nationally, Pharmacy First has delivered over 14 million consultations since it launched, easing pressure on GPs and freeing up A&E for the patients who need it most urgently.
In 2024/25 there were 47,500 hospital admissions for migraines, 77,000 for diseases of the ear, and 681 for scabies, conditions that are often straightforward to treat, but which currently mean a trip to hospital for many people.
There are 30 pharmacies serving Blackpool South's 109,000 residents and between them, they've already delivered well over 14,500 consultations for the seven original conditions since the scheme launched, from earache and sinusitis to nearly 3,800 for uncomplicated UTIs alone.
Assuming even a fraction of those would otherwise have meant a trip to the GP, that's thousands of local appointments freed up.
It's not just Pharmacy First, either. Pharmacies here delivered over 18,500 New Medicine Service consultations in just six months, supporting people getting to grips with a new prescription – including, since last October, patients newly started on antidepressants. And with hundreds of contraception consultations and thousands of flu jabs delivered locally each year, it's clear how much day-to-day NHS activity pharmacies like Lytham Road are quietly handling.
Talking to Kevin and his team, it's clear how much pressure community pharmacies are absorbing to make sure people don't have to wait for GP appointments or don't end up in A&E for something that shouldn’t require that level of medical attention.
Pharmacies are clearly willing to take this on and the results speak for themselves. The government has backed this expansion with a £340 million investment package but business rates, staffing costs and medicine prices all squeezing the sector.
Here in Blackpool South, we've lost five pharmacies since 2016, part of 1,383 net closures across the country. If we're going to keep asking pharmacies to do more, we need to keep making the case that the investment matches the ambition, otherwise we risk overburdening the very services we're relying on to ease pressure elsewhere in the NHS.
As we head into winter that local, walk-in option is going to matter even more. If you've got one of the conditions covered, you can go straight to a participating pharmacy without needing a GP appointment first.
Pharmacies across Blackpool South are ready and waiting – you can find your nearest one at Find a pharmacy – NHS.
