The Welsh government will not be offering premises improvement grants to community pharmacies this year, Community Pharmacy Wales (CPW) has confirmed.
In an email to pharmacy owners yesterday, CPW said that “following enquiries from several contractors” it had asked the government about the availability of the grants for 2026/27.
Read more: New NHS optometry service for Welsh pharmacies
“Unfortunately the Welsh government has confirmed that there is no provision in the budget for premises improvements grants in the coming year,” it added.
First launched in September 2024, Wales’ Community Pharmacy Premises Improvement Scheme allowed individual contractors to apply for up to £45,000 of funding, out of a total of £700,000 provided by the government.
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The government said in guidance published last year that the grants can be used by contractors to improve their premises in any of the following ways:
- Investing in digital or automated systems to improve efficiencies in the supply of NHS medicines
- Improving access to NHS community pharmacy clinical services
- Supporting NHS Wales’ contribution to the government’s goal for the Welsh public sector to be net zero carbon by 2030
The government added that the scheme also supports its aim to deliver “better integrated care and health closer to home” and encourage the public to “seek the right care from the right person, first time”.
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It comes after community pharmacies in Wales last month began supplying optometrist-ordered medicines as part of a new NHS service across the country.
The change, which came into effect on April 6, means optometrists can give patients a signed order of medicines or appliances to treat common eye conditions that will be supplied to them free of charge via community pharmacies in Wales.