Robert Evans / Alamy Stock Photo
The Royal Pharmaceutical Society’s (RPS’s) national pharmacy boards held their autumn meetings in September 2025, in person at the Society’s Edinburgh, London and Cardiff offices, also streamed online.
The Scottish Pharmacy Board (SPB) meeting was held on 18 September 2025, English Pharmacy Board (EPB) on 24 September 2025 and Welsh Pharmacy Board (WBP) meeting on 26 September 2025.
Attendees included:
- Wing Tang, head of professional standards;
- Kate Ryan, patient safety manager;
- Paul Bennett, chief executive;
- Amandeep Doll, director for England;
- Alwyn Fortune, policy and engagement lead for Wales;
- Dafydd Rizzo, policy and public affairs executive for Wales;
Apologies were received from Sue Ladds, Ciara Duffy, Helen Davies and Richard Evans.
All boards
Patient safety draft strategy
At each of the three meetings, Wing Tang and Kate Ryan updated the boards on the development of a draft patient safety strategy. They sought feedback and approval of the draft from attendees to inform the final version, while also outlining plans for an RPS/Royal College of Pharmacy patient safety portal.
Tang explained to each meeting that patient safety activity was dispersed across RPS teams and that it was part of several published strategies, but that there had been no specific patient safety strategy or staff patient safety role.
Ryan joined the Society in July 2024 as the first patient safety manager, working two days a week alongside an NHS patient safety role. She went on to summarise the seven principles of the draft strategy, which include putting patients and the public at the heart of patient safety.
Patient safety is a thread that weaves through everything we do, the whole ethos of what a royal college is
Jonathan Burton, chair of the Scottish Pharmacy Board
Audrey Thompson, a member of the SPB, said she liked the focus on patient safety rather than medicines safety, and thought it fit the RPS vision and mission.
“Should that be more explicit, to strengthen fact that this is not a new thing and is what we do?” she asked.
Jonathan Burton, chair of the SPB, commented: “I also don’t see this as completely standalone work — it’s a thread that weaves through everything we do, the whole ethos of what a royal college is.
“The challenge is: how do we bring it to life and make it impactful?”
At the EPB meeting, board member Danny Bartlett commented: “Having a strategy is important but practising pharmacists want examples and spotlighting of good things that are happening.”
Fellow board member Ewan Maule asked if the strategy would be aimed at the profession or a broader audience to position pharmacy as a leader, to which Ryan said it would be a bit of both.
Paul Bennett, chief executive of the RPS, said at all meetings he viewed this piece of work less as a separate strategy and more as programme of work that would be woven through all activities.
At the WPB meeting, Bennett explained said he wanted to recognise the “fantastic amount of work you have already done”.
“I wonder if this is actually a programme of works rather than a single strategy. I hope this will resonate very strongly and be woven as a golden thread in future strategy,” he added.
Tang concluded that feedback would be taken on board for the next draft and that the strategy would also be tested with external patient groups and patient safety groups.
Aseptic preparation services
Each board meeting heard that the RPS’s ‘Quality assurance of aseptic preparation services‘ document — first published in 1993, the fifth edition of which was published in 2016 — is being updated.
Tang and Rizzo explained that much has changed since 2016, including Brexit, new therapies, updated chief pharmacist standards and supervision legislation.
They outlined plans for the Society to launch a public consultation on the updated aseptic standards later in 2025, with a website launch planned for May 2026. The updated document should be ready to share and promote by June 2026.
It has been confirmed that Robert Lowe, director of pharmaceutical quality assurance for Specialist Pharmacy Services in the NHS East of England, will be lead author on the updated standards. The project also includes four working groups with Scottish, Northern Irish and Welsh representation.
Aseptics is an area that has been under-represented
Eleri Schiavone, member of the Welsh Pharmacy Board
WPB member Eleri Schiavone said aseptics was “an area that has been under-represented”, hence this was a “fantastic piece of work”.
At the EPB meeting, board member Matthew Prior said that regulations had been tightened following the COVID-19 pandemic, adding that unlike industry, the NHS has lots of other areas of focus.
Prior asked if there was a risk of “potentially setting up small NHS units to fail”.
Tang responded that there would be a “very active review of existing and new standards to ensure we don’t set people up to fail”, using the expertise of the working group and leadership in specialist pharmacy services.
Elen Jones, acting director of pharmacy at the RPS, added that she had been “reassured by conversations [Wing and I] had with Robert Lowe on this”, around the balance of what the NHS can afford and “patient safety at that critical point”.
Pharmacogenomics
Tang told each board that the RPS is developing a pharmacogenomics competency framework for all prescribers to underpin the growth of pharmacogenomics medicines services.
He explained that Sophie Harding, pharmacogenomics lead at the RPS, is the lead author of the work, which should be ready in the first quarter of 2026.
Tang confirmed there would be a consultation on the draft framework.
Scottish Pharmacy Board meeting
RPS manifesto
Ross Barrow, RPS Scotland head of external relations, said that RPS Scotland had sent a copy of its manifesto to all political parties in Scotland ahead of the 2026 elections, which are required to be held no later than 7 May 2026.
Barrow explained that the Society is now in the process of stakeholder engagement and has a meeting booked with the Scottish National Party on 22 October 2025. There were also plans for an exhibition stand in Parliament in December 2025, sponsored by Gillian Mackay, co-leader of the Scottish Green Party and spokesperson for Health, Social Care and Sport, around the Greener Pharmacy Toolkit.
Barrow also said RPS Scotland was planning to meet with the Scottish Conservatives.
Assisted dying
Barrow went on to tell attendees that the Assisted Dying for Terminally Ill Adults (Scotland) Bill was now at stage two of the process to decide if it should become an Act.
Noting that the RPS has a neutral stance on assisted dying, Fiona McIntyre, policy and practice lead for RPS Scotland, said that — as it stands — the bill does not sufficiently protect pharmacists and that conscious objection is not secured. A mitigation would be to amend the bill to define the role of the pharmacist.
Making assisted dying an opt-in service is the only option that aligns with the ‘neutral in principle’ stance
Catriona Sinclair, member of the English Pharmacy Board
If the role is not further described, there is an inadequate vehicle for conscientious objection, McIntyre said.
Barrow explained that making assisted dying an opt-in service for all healthcare providers “gives security and guarantee” and that other royal colleges and bodies are “united in view that it should be an opt-in service”.
Board member Catriona Sinclair said that opt-in was “the only option that aligns with the ‘neutral in principle’ stance”.
The attendees’ general consensus was that the Society should progress advocating for an opt-in service.
Welsh Pharmacy Board meeting
Senedd update
Iwan Hughes, public affairs and policy executive at RPS Wales, told attendees that a drop-in session had been held at the at the Senedd, following the publication of RPS Wales’ 2026 election manifesto in July 2025.
Hughes also noted that Jeremy Miles, Welsh cabinet secretary for health and social care, spoke at the ‘Pharmacy: delivering a healthier Wales’ conference, held in Cardiff on 25 September 2025, and stayed to hear from pharmacists delivering trailblazer talks at the event.
He confirmed that RPS representatives would be attending the Plaid Cymru conference on 10–11 October 2025, as well as the Reform Conference in February 2026.
Post-election, he explained that there could be between 60 and 70 new members of the Senedd and a range of possible governing scenarios, including a coalition or minority government.
Jones concluded the meeting by flagging that a complete review of the NHS ‘Agenda for change‘ was expected in 2026 — the first revision in more than 20 years.
English Pharmacy Board meeting
At the close of open business in the EPB, board chair Tase Oputu thanked Jones as she prepared to leave her RPS role as acting director of pharmacy for a new role as pharmacy dean at Health Education and Improvement Wales.
“Elen is known for excellent work, being an excellent person, and an amazing pharmacist. A huge thank you, and we wish you the best of luck knowing you will be fantastic in your new position,” Oputu said.
In response, Jones said: “The past nine months supporting the EPB have been a joy, and the past 11 years [with the RPS] have been an honour. It’s more than just a job — it’s a passion.
“Thank you everyone for your work and your time. I will be forever a loyal member and fellow.”
- The date of the next national pharmacy board meetings was set for 6 November 2025
