Closures for learning and development
Published on: 8th October 2026 | Updated on: 8th October 2026
The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026 were laid on Thursday 3rd September as amendments to The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical and Local Pharmaceutical Services) Regulations 2013 (the PLPS Regulations).
As part of the amendment regulations, a Terms of Service was introduced which enables pharmacies to close for training and development during core opening hours (without having to make up the time).
Pharmacies may close for up to a total of four hours in each calendar month. This can be taken as one closure or split across several shorter closures, but the combined time must not exceed four hours in that month, provided that the pharmacy/owner complies with the following:
Notice
- Gives 30 days’ notice to ICB in advance of the closure; and
- The ICB has not objected to the closure because it would lead to a disruption of pharmacy services in the area (e.g. another pharmacy in the relevant area is closing at the same time).
Time of the week/day
- No part of the closure is on a Saturday or Sunday;
- No part of the closure is within the first 3 hours of the first weekday opening and the last 3 hours of the last weekday opening (e.g. Monday morning start and Friday afternoon end, respectively); and
- For a 100-hour pharmacy (a pharmacy subject to the 100-hour conditions – this could be open 72 hours a week), no part of the closure is between 5-9pm Monday to Friday.
Pharmacy actions in advance of the closure
- Local general practices that are accustomed to sending patients to the pharmacy for dispensing emergency prescriptions and Advanced services are informed of the closure;
- The pharmacy profile for the pharmacy in the Directory of Services and on the NHS website is amended via NHS Profile Manager.
- A notice is displayed, which, where practicable, can be read by somebody outside the pharmacy premises, which specifies the days and times the pharmacy is closed. For DSPs, their public website page on which their normal opening hours are displayed must have that information.
Closures for learning and development can be during supplementary opening hours. However, a pharmacy owner may also give 5 weeks’ notice to change these, without giving reasons and without the above conditions.
For more information on this topic please email regulations.team@cpe.org.uk
