Since launching in 2023, thousands of women across the Midlands are going to local pharmacies on the high street to start, continue and review oral contraception in hundreds of participating pharmacies across the region through the NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service.

The service has transformed how women across the Midlands access contraception – offering faster, easier, and more convenient care directly from local pharmacies.

In the East Midlands, over 820 pharmacies can provide the service and have completed almost 53,000 consultations over a recent 12-month period.

As the service reaches its two-year anniversary, pharmacists and NHS leaders are celebrating the growing role of these local community pharmacies in women’s health, as the public welcome pharmacists providing these services which they are highly skilled and trained for.

Jackie Buxton, Pharmacy lead for the NHS in the Midlands said “This service has been a real success story for women’s health. Two years on, we have seen how much women value being able to access contraception easily, safely, and close to home. Community pharmacies are now a vital part of providing free NHS services, giving women more choice and freeing up thousands of GP appointments for other patients”

Emma Anderson, Pharmacist at Evans Pharmacies in the East Midlands said “We have seen over 300 patients in the last 12 months for the contraception service.

We are working with GPs to improve access to care, with most requests for contraception now coming through community pharmacy. We can offer people a range of different times for consultations and where appropriate a 12 months’ supply of their contraceptive pills.

Before this scheme many of our own staff struggled to access contraceptive pill checks around work, so as an employer we know how valuable this can be for people trying to fit appointments in around work and other commitments.

As pharmacists our expertise are in medicines, and we have been enjoying supporting people who are suffering from side-effects switching to formulations that are more suitable for them.”

Pharmacists can now provide expert advice and treatment for a growing list of common conditions, as well as contraception which covers seven common conditions including urinary tract infections, sore throat and sinusitis, and free blood pressure checks (for those aged over 40, not previously diagnosed with high blood pressure (hypertension).

The NHS Pharmacy Contraception Service is part of a wider pharmacy programme. At the end of last month, this further expanded to include emergency contraception, offering women even greater flexibility. The emergency contraception service allows women to get the ‘morning after pill’ for free from participating pharmacies after a consultation from the pharmacist.

Find a pharmacy that offers the contraceptive pill without a prescription – NHS

Find emergency contraception – NHS