Angela visited Cohens Chemist to meet staff and discuss the vital role community pharmacists play in supporting patients and easing pressure on the NHS.
During her visit to the Albion Street branch in Ashton, Angela spoke to the team about the increasing demand for services, the challenges around medicine supply and the importance of ensuring pharmacies have the support they need to continue delivering frontline healthcare in local communities.
The 19 independent pharmacies across Ashton delivered 171 contraception consultations, 6,270 New Medicine Consultations and administered an average of 392 flu vaccinations per pharmacy – higher than the national average – between January and April 2025.
They are also playing a key role in the Pharmacy First initiative, which allows them to supply NHS medicines for seven common conditions including earache, impetigo and sinusitis. Between January 2024 and April 2025, this service helped avoid 4,126 GP appointments in Ashton.
Staff told Angela that while demand for services continues to grow, they face several challenges including ongoing medicine supply problems and staffing pressures. Some medicines in short supply can only be purchased at prices significantly above those listed in the Drug Tariff, leaving pharmacies to cover the extra cost themselves. Across the sector, around 95% of pharmacy teams report rising workload pressures driven by staffing shortages, supply disruption and long-term underfunding.
Community pharmacies have experienced more than a decade of financial pressure and uncertainty, but the Government has recently announced a record funding settlement of over £3 billion for community pharmacies, representing the largest uplift for any part of the NHS in the past two years.
Angela said: “Pharmacies are a vital part of our local communities. The highly trained and dedicated staff are often the first and most accessible point of contact people have with the NHS.
“It was great to visit Cohens Chemist and hear directly from the team about the incredible work they do every day – from delivering vaccinations to providing advice and treatment that helps people get the care they need quickly.
“Pharmacists have faced more than a decade of underfunding and growing pressures. The Government’s record funding settlement for community pharmacies is an important first step in addressing those challenges, but it’s essential that these highly skilled and trusted professionals remain at the heart of local healthcare as we strengthen primary care and move more services into the community.”