Our Structure & Governance

Community Pharmacy England last reviewed its structures and made changes to its composition during 2023/24 following recommendations made by the Review Steering Group (RSG).

Community Pharmacy England Structure

Community Pharmacy England (the operating name of the Pharmaceutical Services Negotiating Committee) is an association whose functions and procedures are set out in a Constitution and Rules.

With effect from 1st April 2023, the Community Pharmacy England has 25 members on its main committee:

• 10 members elected on a regional basis from England;
• 2 members nominated by the Board of the National Pharmacy Association;
• 9 members nominated by the Company Chemists’ Association;
• 3 members elected from the non Company Chemists’ Association multiples; and
• a non-executive chair.

A list of all members can be found on our Committee page.

The committee has recently revisited the existing policy to reassess composition in relation to sector ownership in 2025/26 (i.e. in line with the Committee’s election cycle) and exploring arguments for and against making changes mid-term. The new Governance and People subcommittee is to examine this important issue further in the first half of 2024 and advise the Committee on a way forward.

New Terms of Reference for our subcommittees came into effect from April 2024, with subcommittees being placed in one of two streams: Governance, or Policy and Advisory, to ensure clear separation and accountability. In addition to the subcommittees, there are several working groups of the Committee, the main one being the Negotiating Team.

There are five policy and advisory subcommittees:

• Funding and Contract;
• Legislation and Regulatory Affairs;
• LPC and Contractor Support;
• Service Development; and
• Communications and Public Affairs.

There are two governance subcommittees:

• Audit and Risk; and
• Governance and People

Guide to Community Pharmacy England Subcommittees and Working Groups

All members of Community Pharmacy England adhere to a Code of Conduct and Governance Framework adopted by the Committee in April 2024. Most LPCs in England have also adopted the same meaning a shared Governance Framework operates across the system of local and national representation for Pharmacy Owners.

Complaints

Concerns and issues about Community Pharmacy England or its work may be raised in a variety of ways.

• Formal complaints or concerns from a contractor may be raised through the Community Pharmacy England Committee Member who represents the contractor (i.e. the member they have appointed or elected), or through the contractor’s LPC.
• Complaints from contractors, LPCs or from anyone else, including patients, may also be raised with any Community Pharmacy England Committee Member including Subcommittee Chairs; or directly with the Chief Executive, staff members or the Chair of Community Pharmacy England.
• Anyone can raise a complaint about Community Pharmacy England via email. Complaints sent to this email address are considered by the Chair of the Governance and People subcommittee, or by the Chief Executive, as appropriate.