The National Health Service (Pharmaceutical Services) (Wales) Regulations 2020

Pharmacy opening hours: general

23.—(1) An NHS pharmacist must ensure that pharmaceutical services are provided at each of the premises from which the NHS pharmacist has undertaken to provide pharmaceutical services—

(a) for not less than 40 hours each week, or

(b) if the Local Health Board in whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included, or on appeal the Welsh Ministers, has directed that the NHS pharmacist may provide pharmaceutical services at the premises for fewer than 40 hours per week, provided that the NHS pharmacist provides those services at set times and on set days, at the times and on the days so set, or

(c) if the Local Health Board in whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included, or on appeal the Welsh Ministers, has directed that the NHS pharmacist must provide pharmaceutical services at the premises for more than 40 hours per week, at set times and on set days, at the times and on the days so set, or

(d) if the Local Health Board in whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included, or on appeal the Welsh Ministers, has directed that the NHS pharmacist must provide pharmaceutical services at the premises for more than 40 hours per week—

(i) for the total number of hours each week required by virtue of that direction, and

(ii) as regards the additional hours for which the NHS pharmacist is required to provide pharmaceutical services by virtue of that direction, at the days on which and the times at which the NHS pharmacist is required to provide pharmaceutical services during those additional hours, as set out in that direction,

but a Local Health Board may, in appropriate circumstances, agree a temporary suspension of pharmaceutical services for a set period, where it has received 3 months’ notice of the proposed suspension from the NHS pharmacist.

(2) An NHS pharmacist must notify the Local Health Board in whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included of other hours during which the premises from which the NHS pharmacist has undertaken to provide pharmaceutical services will be open, which are hours in addition to those during which the pharmacy is obliged to open by virtue of sub-paragraph (1) (and which are referred to in these Regulations as “supplementary opening hours”).

(3) At each of the premises from which an NHS pharmacist has undertaken to provide pharmaceutical services, the NHS pharmacist must exhibit—

(a) a notice specifying the times at which the premises are open for the provision of drugs and appliances, and

(b) at times when the premises are not open, a notice based on information provided by the Local Health Board, legible from outside the premises, specifying the addresses of other NHS pharmacists included in the pharmaceutical list and the times at which drugs and appliances may be obtained from those addresses.

(4) An NHS pharmacist must, on request, submit a return to the Local Health Board on whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included setting out—

(a) the times at which pharmaceutical services are provided at each of the premises from which the NHS pharmacist has undertaken to provide pharmaceutical services (including the times at which the NHS pharmacist is providing pharmaceutical services when they are not obliged to do so by virtue of sub-paragraph (1)), and

(b) the pharmaceutical services which the NHS pharmacist ordinarily provides at each of those premises.

(5) Where an NHS pharmacist changes—

(a) the days on which or the times at which pharmaceutical services are to be provided at premises from which the NHS pharmacist has undertaken to provide pharmaceutical services, or

(b) the pharmaceutical services which the NHS pharmacist is ordinarily to provide at those premises,

the NHS pharmacist must supply the Local Health Board on whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included with a return informing it of the change.

(6) Where an NHS pharmacist has submitted a return under sub-paragraph (4) or (5) in respect of any premises, or where the NHS pharmacist has set out in an application under these Regulations for inclusion in the pharmaceutical list the days on which and the times at which pharmaceutical services will be provided at the premises to which the application relates if the application is granted—

(a) the NHS pharmacist must ensure that pharmaceutical services are provided at the premises to which the return or application relates on the days and at the times set out in the return or application (unless the return or application has been superseded by a return, or a further return, under sub-paragraph (5)), and

(b) the NHS pharmacist must not change—

(i) the days on which or the times at which pharmaceutical services are to be provided at those premises, or

(ii) the pharmaceutical services which the NHS pharmacist is ordinarily to provide at those premises,

as set out in that return or application, for a period of at least 3 months after that return or application was received by the Local Health Board.

(7) Where an NHS pharmacist is prevented by illness or other reasonable cause from complying with their obligations under sub-paragraph (1), they must, where practicable, make arrangements with one or more other NHS pharmacists whose premises are situated in the neighbourhood for the provision of pharmaceutical services during that time.

(8) Where there is a temporary suspension in the provision of pharmaceutical services for a reason beyond the control of the NHS pharmacist, the NHS pharmacist will not be in breach of sub-paragraphs (1), (2) and (3) provided that—

(a) the NHS pharmacist notifies the Local Health Board on whose pharmaceutical list the NHS pharmacist is included of that suspension as soon as practicable, and

(b) the NHS pharmacist uses all reasonable endeavours to resume provision of pharmaceutical services as soon as practicable.

(9) Planned refurbishment of a pharmacy is neither a “reasonable cause” for the purposes of sub-paragraph (7), nor a “reason beyond the control of the NHS pharmacist” for the purposes of sub-paragraph (8).

(10) For the purposes of calculating the number of hours that a pharmacy is open during a week that includes Christmas Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday or a bank holiday, it must be deemed that the pharmacy was open on that day at the times at which it would ordinarily have been open on that day of the week.

(11) In this Part—

“additional hours” (“oriau ychwanegol”) for which an NHS pharmacist is to be required to provide pharmaceutical services are those hours during which the NHS pharmacist would not be providing pharmaceutical services, were the NHS pharmacist subject to the condition set out in sub-paragraph (1)(a) and not the condition set out in sub-paragraph (1)(d);

“existing direction” (“cyfarwyddyd presennol”) means one that has been made in accordance with this Part or one that was in existence on the date that these Regulations come into force.