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Pharmacy owners and employers

The GPhC has the power to set standards for pharmacy owners and superintendent pharmacists who manage pharmacy businesses. These standards will apply from 2010 and can cover areas including:

• staff training
• the condition of the pharmacy
• the conditions in which medicinal products are stored
• the availability or condition of facilities or equipment at the premises used to carry out certain activities, and
• the use of the premises as a training establishment.

Benefits

Setting clear and transparent standards will provide a consistent framework and guidelines, helping pharmacy owners and superintendent pharmacists to ensure the safe and effective practice of pharmacy at their premises.

This will mean that the public can be sure that all pharmacies meet certain minimum standards. Employees will also be sure that their working environment complies with defined minimum regulatory standards.

Consultation

The GPhC has a duty to consult stakeholders, including pharmacy owners, so that they can have an input into the development of the standards and ensure that they are fit for purpose. Standards will need to take into account the different ways in which pharmacy services are delivered in England, Scotland and Wales and must work across all three countries. More information on how the GPhC will work across the UK can be found in the section on the GPhC’s role in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern  Ireland.

Sanctions

The GPhC has the power to apply sanctions for failure to comply with the standards. These include improvement notices, fines and, ultimately, removal from the GPhC's register. This will allow the GPhC to use the most appropriate and proportionate measure to ensure compliance.

Requesting and sharing information

The GPhC has the power to request information from pharmacy owners, including periodic declarations and self-assessments. Pharmacy owners and directors of companies that own pharmacies must also provide information about any criminal offences with which they have been charged, and about any investigation into their professional conduct being carried out by any licensing, regulatory or other body.

The GPhC will try to ensure that the regulatory burden associated with the introduction of these new standards is not overly onerous. The GPhC will work with others to ensure that, as far as possible, information is shared in order to minimise the burden of regulation, monitoring and inspection.

Fees

Pharmacy premises fees will be set by the GPhC from 2011, while the Department of Health will continue to set premises fees for 2010. The GPhC will be able to take a flexible approach to fee-setting, will be open and transparent with regard to fees and will ensure that they reflect the true costs of regulation. Fees will not be set in a way that discourages pharmacy owners from taking on new services or developing existing pharmacy services.

Pharmacy technicians

Statutory regulation for pharmacy technicians began on 1 July 2009 following implementation of the relevant provisions of the Health Care and Associated Professions (Miscellaneous Amendments and Practitioner Psychologists) Order 2009. The Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain holds the register until the establishment of the GPhC.

Employers are encouraged to ensure that relevant staff are registered as soon as possible if they are currently practising or intend to practise as pharmacy technicians. More information on registration is available in the section on pharmacy technicians.

For owners and employers, the registration of pharmacy technicians will allow a more flexible approach to the workforce; for example, future changes to supervision requirements will free up pharmacists to do more clinical work, which in turn will allow technicians to take on new responsibilities. Registration will also provide reassurance that the entire workforce has up-to-date knowledge and skills and is fit to practise: once registered, pharmacy technicians will be required to undertake statutory continuing professional development relevant to their area of practice. Finally, registration will put pharmacies in a stronger position to respond effectively to emergency situations.

Read a pharmacy owner's view.