| Weekly News Digest - 26th March 2026 |
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🌞 Summer is coming — and your patients will be coming to you first!From allergies and bites to travel health and seasonal self‑care, community pharmacies are about to hit peak demand. To help you stay ahead of the curve, CPTV LPC Academy is hosting a full day of clinical learning designed specifically for frontline pharmacy teams. This event brings together expert speakers, hands‑on skills trainers, and practical, sessions to get you summer‑ready. Whether you join us for the full day or half day, you will walk away with refreshed knowledge and practical tools to deliver high‑quality patient care throughout the busy season.
What you can expect:
☑️ Clinical sessions focused on the conditions you see every day
☑️ Practical skills training to boost confidence and capability
☑️ Sponsored updates on key summer health topics
☑️ Time to connect with peers, local partners, and LPC leads
📍 Venue Holiday Inn, Handy Cross, High Wycombe, HP11 1LT
🗓️ Sunday, 10th May, 10am-4pm
👉 Agenda & Registration Explore the agenda and choose the session that suits your schedule. |
Good Friday falls on 3 April 2026, pharmacy owners normally receive an extra day—6 April—to submit their FP34C declaration via MYS. However, 6 April is also Easter Monday, meaning many pharmacies closed over the long weekend may not benefit from the extended deadline. This could leave some pharmacies with only 1st–2nd April to submit their March 2026 declaration to the NHSBSA. CPE is sharing this early reminder so pharmacy owners can plan ahead and ensure their FP34C is submitted by 6 April to receive early advance payment on 10 April 2026. Click here.
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| The CPPSG has released two new resources to support teams delivering Opioid Treatment Programmes. Focus on Methadone, a short video, offers practical guidance for the safe supply of methadone and a new Bank Holiday checklist is also available to help pharmacy teams plan and deliver services before, during and after Bank Holidays. Both resources can be accessed via the CPPSG Resource Hub. |
Income Support and Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance exemptions to end from April 2026Income Support and Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance are to be abolished by the DWP from 1 April 2026. Some payments will continue to be made for a two-week run-on period to provide transitional protection, which means that people may continue to claim exemption from prescription charges on the grounds of Income Support or Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance until the end of 14 April 2026. Read more. |
| NHS England has authorised and published the patient group direction (PGD) for use in the Spring 2026 COVID-19 vaccination campaign. See here to view the Spring Covid-19 PGD. |
| We encourage you to sign up to the Sexual Safety Charter if you haven’t done so already, complete the self assurance checklist, and complete the national online form. Whilst this is not a mandatory requirement for community pharmacy, it does help providers to achieve compliance with new legislation around sexual harassment ahead of changes. Read letter |
| Download the latest edition of Healthwatch Oxfordshire newsletter. |
| A short survey has opened to hear what pharmacy owners think of Community Pharmacy England’s communications and how they could be improved. From the website to webinars, email newsletters and in-person events, there are a whole host of ways that CPE regularly communicate and engage with pharmacy owners and their teams. They want to hear from you, what is working well for you, what could be done differently, and any alternatives that would suit you better. Survey closes 17th April. |
Monthly Deadline TrackerStay on top of your schedule with ease using our Monthly Deadline Tracker. This March edition is designed to keep you organized and help you meet your deadline effortlessly. |
| Pharmacy owners are reminded that they have until the end of Tuesday, 31st March 2026, to compile all necessary evidence demonstrating they have met the PQS domains claimed during the February declaration window. While the declaration period closed on 27th February, pharmacy owners have until the end of 31st March to finish gathering their evidence. Payments for the 2025/26 scheme will be issued on 1st April 2026 to all owners who submitted a valid declaration. |
| Please remember it is part of the Terms of Service to update your pharmacy information on NHS Profile Manager by 31st March 2026. |
EXTENDED DEADLINE! Pharmacy Pressures Survey 2026Pharmacy Pressures Survey 2026 is now open. It consists of two surveys (one for business owners and one for pharmacy teams), many of the questions have been kept similar to last year’s survey. They take around 10-15 minutes to complete and will remain open until 23:59 on 13th April 2026. Click here. |
| Stay informed with the Pharmacy Academy podcast channel, a great source for weekly updates on essential pharmacy topics, powered by insights from NHS, CPE, and PGD guidance and AI generated for clarity. Stay connected, enhance your expertise, and dive into key pharmacy discussions—all in one place. |
Tune into this week's podcast! |
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| CPPE are hosting a blood pressure assessment workshop on Sunday, 19th April, from 11-1.30pm at the CIM Business Centre, Cookham, Maidenhead. To register see here for more details and registration link. |
| Stress Management and Building Resilience Workshop is available to view on-demand until Tuesday 31st March 2026. Visit the Wellbeing and support - Community Pharmacy England webpage to view the session. |
| Hampshire & Isle of Wight, Frimley, and Buckinghamshire Oxfordshire & West Berkshire ICBs have been awarded Teach and Treat funding through the national expressions of interest process. They are launching a community pharmacy led model with more placements and better access to Designated Prescribing Practitioners. For more information and how to register see here. (Expressions of interest registration link) |
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