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Pharmacies would be able to provide a broad range of off-site vaccination services under proposed changes to the Human Medicines Regulations 2012.
According to the proposals, which were published in a consultation document on 5 September 2025, pharmacies may be able to offer all vaccinations against a vaccine preventable disease, which offers parity between pharmacy businesses and other healthcare providers to increase access to vaccinations, support uptake and ultimately help to protect the public’s health.
Currently, pharmacies can offer COVID-19 and flu vaccines away from their registered premises — such as pop-up sites — under a patient group direction (PGD), which is something that was legally enabled during the COVID-19 pandemic and then permanently introduced via legislation.
In support of the plans, the proposals note that community pharmacies have, in recent years, been playing an ever greater role in vaccination services.
“It is likely that community pharmacies will play an even bigger role in the future, including offering bespoke vaccination services, tailored to the needs of the populations they serve,” the document adds.
The proposals also suggest making permanent the ability to use an extended workforce to supply and administer vaccinations under a PGD. This change would replace a temporary amendment to the regulations that was added during the COVID-19 pandemic, which allowed such staff — including pharmacy technicians — to deliver COVID-19 and flu vaccines under a national protocol.
In addition, the proposed amendments would introduce a vaccine group direction (VGD), which would make permanent the ability of non-registered healthcare workers, and registered healthcare workers who are unable to operate under a PGD, to deliver parts of the vaccination process under the supervision of a registered healthcare professional.
The VGD could initially be used to deliver high-volume vaccination services related to COVID-19 and influenza.
However, under the proposals, other suitable programmes could include shingles and respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccinations for older adults, school-based programmes and, potentially, measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) catch-up vaccinations.
NHS England commissioned 50 community pharmacies to deliver RSV vaccinations from September 2024. In April 2025, the programme was later extended to up to 200 pharmacies, which will provide RSV vaccinations in 2025/2026.
A pilot scheme, which saw more than 40 pharmacies provide MMR catch-up vaccinations in the north west of England, came to an end in March 2025. In August 2025, The Pharmaceutical Journal reported that the scheme was being evaluated.
Commenting on the government’s announcement, Malcolm Harrison, chief executive of the Company Chemists’ Association, said the association “wholeheartedly support these proposals”.
“The decision to allow offsite provision of vaccinations brings community pharmacy in line with other healthcare providers. This will allow community pharmacy to expand provision for vaccination programmes in line with patient need.”
“The decision to make permanent the ability to use an extended workforce builds on the good practice deployed during the [COVID-19] pandemic, and which the NHS has benefited from ever since,” he said.
“Community pharmacy is well placed to administer a wider array of NHS vaccines and these proposals represent sensible and pragmatic policymaking.”
The consultation will close on 28 November 2025.
