CPE wraps up party conferences with Opposition MPs
Productive conversations on prevention, neighbourhood health and NHS reform have been the highlight of Community Pharmacy England’s work this political party conference season.
We wrapped up a busy season at the Conservative Party Conference this week, following discussions with Labour and the Liberal Democrats, as we continue to make the case for community pharmacy and its role in the future of healthcare.
Chief Executive Janet Morrison also had a constructive meeting with Reform UK Deputy Leader Richard Tice MP over the summer.
This week the team attended a range of conference events to hear more about the Conservatives’ developing healthcare policy and to advocate for community pharmacy. We were able to speak with key Opposition MPs, including members of the Shadow Health Team, as well as policy influencers and health stakeholders.
A centrepiece of our conference programme was a roundtable with The Rt Hon Damian Hinds MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, exploring how more healthcare can be delivered closer to home.
Hosted in partnership with Re:State, ‘Community centric: the future of healthcare closer to home’ brought together MPs, healthcare stakeholders and policy influencers to discuss how community-based healthcare can evolve, the role of innovation in improving access to care, and the contribution community pharmacy can make.
Zoe Long, Director of Communications, Corporate and Public Affairs at Community Pharmacy England, and Committee Member Dervis Gurol highlighted the contribution pharmacies already make through their accessibility, clinical expertise and position at the heart of local communities. They also set out the support and investment needed to enable pharmacies to play a greater role in primary care.
The discussion explored the value of greater local flexibility in delivering community healthcare, alongside the case for investment now to unlock longer-term benefits and savings for the NHS.
Watch our video to get a flavour of all our engagement across the party conferences:
Dervis Gurol, independent pharmacy owner and CPE Committee Member, said:
“As pharmacists, we see first-hand that no two communities are the same. In East Brighton, the health needs can vary significantly from one neighbourhood to the next, so we need the flexibility to provide services that reflect the people who actually walk through our doors, whether they are students, working families, older people or those living with frailty and long-term conditions.
“Community pharmacies already support people with an incredibly broad range of health needs, and we have the potential to do much more. But we won’t get the best outcomes by designing every service in exactly the same way and expecting it to work everywhere. We need to listen to local communities, understand where the greatest needs are and give pharmacy teams the flexibility and investment to respond.”
Zoe Long, Director of Communications, Corporate and Public Affairs at Community Pharmacy England, said:
“This political conference season has given us more valuable opportunities to speak directly to politicians about both the enormous potential of community pharmacy and the very real pressures facing the sector. This was particularly timely following the reshuffles across both the Labour and Conservative front bench and health teams.
“We heard strong support for pharmacies delivering more care in the community and recognition of the role pharmacy can play in prevention and improving access to healthcare. We need to see that recognition reflected in action: that means sustained investment and a clear long-term plan for community pharmacy. Patients care deeply about access to primary care and pharmacy, and we need to see that reflected in decisions about where NHS investment goes.”
Community Pharmacy England will continue these conversations beyond the conference season with politicians of all parties and wider key contacts to build our network of pharmacy advocates across the political spectrum.
