A Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PNA) is a detailed assessment of the pharmaceutical services available to local residents and whether these services are meeting the current and future needs of the population.
It looks at issues such as access to community pharmacies, the services they provide, population health needs, and where there may be gaps or opportunities to improve provision. The PNA helps ensure that people can access the right pharmacy services, in the right place, at the right time.
The PNA is a statutory responsibility of the Health and Wellbeing Board, which must assess local need and publish an updated assessment every three years. As well as providing a valuable picture of pharmaceutical services across the area, the PNA plays an important role in shaping future service provision and informing decisions about pharmacy-related healthcare services.
By considering population health needs, demographic changes and feedback from residents and stakeholders, the PNA helps ensure that pharmacy services continue to support the health and wellbeing of local communities.
2025 PNA
The 2025 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment found that Warwickshire has a comprehensive network of community pharmacies that is currently meeting the needs of local residents. Most people have good access to pharmacy services, including medicines, health advice, vaccinations and an increasing range of clinical services that support people to stay healthy and manage long-term conditions.
As Warwickshire's population continues to grow and healthcare services evolve, pharmacies are expected to play an increasingly important role in delivering accessible care closer to home, helping to reduce pressure on other parts of the NHS. Ongoing monitoring will help ensure services remain accessible, responsive and able to meet future demand.
2022 PNA
The 2022 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment found that community pharmacy services across Coventry and Warwickshire are generally meeting the needs of local residents, with good overall access to pharmacies and a wide range of services available. Community pharmacies play an important role in supporting health and wellbeing, providing medicines, health advice, vaccinations and other clinical services close to where people live.
However, the assessment highlights the need to continue monitoring the impact of population growth, housing developments, workforce pressures and changing patterns of demand to ensure services remain accessible and responsive. Ongoing partnership working, service innovation and targeted support for communities facing barriers to access will help ensure pharmacy services continue to meet the needs of local people in the future.
2022 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment: Supplementary Statement - June 2024 (PDF, 1.9MB)
2018 PNA
The 2018 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment found that Warwickshire's network of community pharmacies and dispensing GP practices was providing good overall access to pharmaceutical services, with no significant gaps in provision identified. Pharmacies play an important role in supporting health and wellbeing through the supply of medicines, health advice, smoking cessation support, sexual health services and other preventative services close to where people live.
While access to services was generally good, the assessment highlighted opportunities to improve public awareness of the services available through pharmacies and to further develop community pharmacy's role in supporting prevention, self-care and management of long-term conditions. As Warwickshire's population grows and communities change, ongoing monitoring will help ensure pharmaceutical services remain accessible, responsive and able to meet future demand.
2021 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment: Supplementary Statement – April 2021 (PDF, 218KB)
2018 Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment (PDF, 2.7MB)
Information last updated: September 2026
