A GOVERNMENT funding boost for community pharmacies has been given a cautious welcome in West Devon – albeit with the observation that increases in staff costs will absorb most of the extra cash.

The Department of Health and Social Care has confirmed it has agreed funding with Community Pharmacy England worth an extra £617-million over two years following a six-week consultation.

The government is also writing off £193-million of debt for community pharmacy owners linked to dispensing activity during the pandemic and increased fees for dispensing prescriptions.

Labour says the increase signals the government’s “first steps in addressing the years of underfunding that has left the sector facing significant financial shortfalls”.

The 2025 to 2026 uplift represents a 15 per cent increase in government spending on the previous year, higher than the record 5.8 per cent growth in the total NHS budget.

Local pharmacies have welcomed the news but say it just brings them back to a level playing field as they contend with national insurance contribution and wage increases from April 6.

Pharmacy owner Will Pike from PharmaDerma in Okehampton said: “It’s definitely a step in the right direction but generally with national insurance increases and wage rise increases, it just takes us back to a level playing field. I don’t want to sound like we’re moaning. There hasn’t been an uplift for 15 years, so it’s good, but there’s more work needed to be done to stop closures.”

In 2024, an average of four to five community pharmacies were closing each week in England according to data from the NHS Business Services Authority and the National Pharmacy Association. According to Will, this added investment won’t be enough to halt the number of closures.

He said: “I think it will slow down the closures, but I don’t think that it will stop it completely because most companies will be having to use this money to pay staff and pay their national insurance, so they’ll be in the same position as they have been for the last year. For an average sized company like ours that bill will be around £10,000.”

‘Bricks and Mortar’ chemists make their money on the services they offer, whereas online ones are just dispensing factories, Will said.

PharmaDerma is picking up more and more of the Pharmacy First services such as vaccinations and health checks to free up GP surgeries. He added: “We’re really busy for that and our turnover is good from NHS and private services with more and more going private now.”

However, the move to reduce the fee for blood pressure checks by a third from £15 to £10, is something that is baffling Will. “I don’t know why they’ve done that really. It’s a real shame. They explained that it can be done by any member of the team including a pharmacy assistant but it’s a bit strange.

“Ambulatory costs have increased but with most stores just doing three to four per month, the difference is negligible and doesn’t make up the shortfall.”

Ambulatory care is care provided outside a hospital setting, something pharmacies will be doing more of.