The RA’s Health & Community convenor, Karen Randolph, who has been leading the campaign to reinstate a pharmacy in the centre of Thames Ditton, brings news of a new development.
Readers will know Thames Ditton High Street lost its pharmacy in early 2025 (though it had been run down for the previous year). Early in 2025 we raised a petition seeking the reinstatement of the pharmacy – it quickly attracted 1200 signatures. In April 2025 a locally based individual pharmacist applied (supported by the TDWGRA) to the NHS to reopen the pharmacy, on the basis of ‘unmet need’. (NB. Unlike any other retailer a ’new’ pharmacy needs a license if they wish to dispense NHS prescriptions, from the local Integrated Care Board – now Surrey & Sussex ICB). That application was refused by Surrey Heartlands ICB (the predecessor to Surrey & Sussex ICB) on the basis that the 2025 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA), considered there were NO gaps in pharmaceutical provision in the whole of Surrey. This conclusion was reached despite the closure of 20 or so pharmacies in Surrey in just the preceding 2 years!
We know the strength of feeling in the village has not gone away. The applicant, with our encouragement, has now made a new application on a slightly different basis. This is a costly process and necessarily involves the help of a pharmaceutical consultant to navigate the (extremely) bureaucratic application process. The Thames Ditton & Weston Green Residents’ Association together with the Thames Ditton Foundation, have jointly funded the process. Surrey & Sussex ICB (Integrated Care Board) will make their decision later this summer/autumn.
This new application is to address ‘unforeseen benefits’ – primarily on the basis that the data for the 2025 PNA was collated prior to the Government’s introduction of its ’10 year Health Plan’ and therefore would not have taken the requirements of the government’s plan into consideration. The Health Plan, sets out a comprehensive strategy to reform the NHS, aiming to build a ‘modern, preventative, and efficient health service’ by changing the way the health service operates. It proposes moving care closer to people’s homes. This includes expanding the scope and remit of local pharmaceutical services, with the intention of reducing the impact of ill health and easing pressure on GP’s, while improving access to essential health care and advice for patients.
Many consider that pharmacists are an underused asset. They are highly trained health professionals who are now being encouraged to offer prompt advice and treatment for specific conditions. Currently, those in our village who are likely to need a pharmacy the most – the elderly, those with chronic health conditions, families with young children – are being disadvantaged. By rejecting the reinstatement of a pharmacy it is surely contrary to the intentions of the Government’s new health service strategy? A pharmacy in Thames Ditton, will also help encourage people to shop local too.