The Gloucestershire Health and Wellbeing Board met on Tuesday 23 September 2025 to discuss pharmaceutical needs, health protection and partnership working. The board was scheduled to confirm the minutes of the meeting held on 29 July 2025, and to consider questions from the public and board members. The main items scheduled for discussion were the Gloucestershire Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment 2025-2028, and the Health Protection Assurance Report 2025.

Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment 2025-2028

The board was scheduled to consider a presentation on the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) for Gloucestershire 2025-28, and to confirm approval of the document.

The PNA PNA25-28.pdf was undertaken to assess and describe how pharmaceutical services can meet the health needs of the people of Gloucestershire for the period 2025 to 2028. It was intended to identify if there is a need for additional premises, services, or improvements to access.

The PNA considered:

• The current provision of necessary services
• Gaps in provision of necessary services
• Current provision of other relevant services
• Gaps in provision of services that would secure improvements and better access to pharmaceutical services
• Other services that affect the assessment of the need for pharmaceutical services

The PNA found that almost all (99.9%) Gloucestershire residents can access a community pharmacy or dispensing doctor within 10-15 minutes. It also noted that while access to community pharmacies is more limited in rural compared to urban parts of the county, districts containing rural areas also have dispensing doctors to support access to pharmaceutical services in these areas.

The PNA concluded that the essential services delivered by community pharmacies are sufficient to meet the pharmaceutical needs of Gloucestershire.

The PNA also recognised that public expectations of community pharmacies are evolving, with growing demand for advanced and enhanced services, and that ongoing monitoring will be essential to ensure that any emerging gaps in future service provision are identified and addressed in a timely manner.

The localities used in this PNA correspond to the District Council areas of Gloucestershire: Cheltenham, Cotswold, Forest of Dean, Gloucester, Stroud and Tewkesbury.

The PNA was informed by Gloucestershire demographic and health data, feedback from the public and key professional stakeholders, and mapping and analysis of current service provision across Gloucestershire.

The population of Gloucestershire is growing, and all localities are likely to see a significant increase in older age groups with people living longer and with more complex health needs. The population profile differs across localities used in this assessment, particularly in terms of age-structure, deprivation, and ethnic composition.

As of May 2025, there were 103 community pharmacies, 30 dispensing doctors, two dispensing appliance contractors (DACs), and two distance selling pharmacies in Gloucestershire.

The PNA also noted that there are planned increases in housing provision across the county in the next five years, but that this is not expected to have a significant impact on the provision of, or access to, pharmaceutical services within the county.

The PNA included the following recommendation:

Essential services delivered by community pharmacies are sufficient to meet pharmaceutical needs

Health Protection Assurance Report 2025

The board was scheduled to receive a presentation on the Annual Gloucestershire Health Protection Assurance Report Public reports pack Tuesday 23-Sep-2025 13.30 Gloucestershire Health Wellbeing Board.pdf, a report prepared by the Gloucestershire County Council Health Protection Assurance Board (HPAB).

The HPAB was established in 2012 to enable the Director of Public Health (DPH) to be assured that relevant organisations involved in Health Protection in Gloucestershire have adequate functions in place to protect the communities they serve against a range of threats and hazards.

The report stated that the HPAB functions to enable strong relationships between all agencies to be maintained and developed to provide a robust health protection system in Gloucestershire.

The report outlined the following strategic aims and objectives:

• Protect the population against key vaccine-preventable diseases by maximising immunisation uptake
• Minimise the spread of common infections through infection, prevention and control (including hand and respiratory hygiene)
• Minimise the transmission of Tuberculosis and Blood Borne Viruses (BBV) including Hepatitis B (HBV) and Hepatitis C (HCV)
• Minimise the harm caused by outbreaks and incidents
• Ensure that no harm is caused by preventable health and social care associated infections and reduce harms and long-term risks from antimicrobial resistance
• Enable people to live and work in areas with good air quality

The report also provided updates on action against these strategic aims, and outlined new areas of focus for 2025/26, including:

• Delegation of vaccinations to local Integrated Care Boards from NHS England and changes to childhood vaccinations
• Pandemic plans & preparedness
• Implementation of the Infection Prevention and Management action plan
• TB pathways and service activity
• Consideration of the Health Protection impacts of climate change

The report noted that equity is central to the HPAB mission and an important consideration for all partners working in Gloucestershire's integrated care partnership, and that all providers should demonstrate that they are aware of their legal duties to reduce health inequalities in relation to their services, be able to identify where inequalities may arise, and have actionable plans to address them.

The report also highlighted the importance of partnership working as a health protection system, and the need for communities to have confidence in the systems and practices in place to protect them.

Terms of Reference Review

The board was scheduled to receive an update on the planned Terms of Reference Review for the Health and Wellbeing Board and Health and Wellbeing Partnership.