Royal Pharmaceutical Society
Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) has become the first hospital trust to reach the ‘gold’ level of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s (RPS’s) Greener Pharmacy Toolkit.
The free NHS-commissioned toolkit, which launched in April 2025, is supported by the Greener NHS programme. It enables pharmacies to obtain bronze, silver and gold accreditation in relation to their environmental impact across six domains: people; clinical practice; operations and strategies; resource use; information and communication technology; and travel.
LTHT achieved gold status through work carried out by its Pharmacy Green Group, a local sustainability group established at St James’s University Hospital in 2022.
Richard Bowers, lead clinician in medicines procurement and supply at the hospital, told The Pharmaceutical Journal that the Pharmacy Green Group aimed to provide a “focal point for sustainability knowledge … [where] those passionate about all things sustainability [could] come together to discuss ideas”, inspired by the wider trust’s existing Sustainability Group.
The Green Group’s initiatives include decommissioning desflurane and piped nitrous oxide gas; optimising the medicines return/re-use system, including part-packs; and setting up a metered dose inhaler recycling scheme, led by Toby Capstick, a consultant respiratory pharmacist.
The group is committed to improving sustainability practices both within and beyond the trust. Links with regional healthcare organisations have been established via the West Yorkshire Network for Pharmacy, Sustainability and the Environment and the North East and Yorkshire NHS England Sustainability Group.
Bowers said: “Achieving gold status is a fantastic reflection of the work and passion so many of our pharmacy team have shown. We will continue to progress our sustainability work, and welcome opportunities to share learning with other healthcare organisations.”
Wing Tang, head of professional standards at the RPS, said: “We are delighted that LTHT has achieved the gold accreditation of the RPS’s Greener Pharmacy Toolkit.
“This pharmacy has been a pioneer, demonstrating exceptional leadership in reducing their carbon footprint across clinical practice, operations and patient care as outlined in the toolkit.
“This is a proud milestone for the profession and demonstrates that ambitious goals for environmental sustainability are attainable through dedication, action and strong leadership.”
Tang added: “Their success highlights the core purpose of this work, enabling all pharmacy teams — hospital and community — to actively contribute to a net zero NHS, whilst improving patient outcomes and service efficiency.”
In May 2025, The Pharmaceutical Journal revealed that more than 40 Superdrug pharmacies had achieved bronze status under the Greener Pharmacy Toolkit.
Pharmacy teams can access the toolkit here.
- This story was amended on 26 November 2025 to correct a typographical error in Toby Capstick’s name
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Well done to Leeds Pharmacy team for all the effort and work behind the scenes - absolutely brilliant!