Review Steering Group (RSG)

The Pharmacy Representation Review Steering Group (RSG) is taking forward work to improve community pharmacy contractor representation and support. Want to know more about the RSG and the work they do? Read the ‘At A Glance’ Guide for a detailed overview (published May 2021).

RSG proposals have been approved

The RSG published the finalised proposals on 29th April 2022. The proposal can be viewed here. The Review Steering Group (RSG) have been working to ensure that the support and services offered by PSNC and the LPCs are fit for the future.

The vote on the proposals for the future of PSNC and LPCs (setting the direction for pharmacy representation) began on Friday 27th May 2022 and ended on Friday 17th June 2022. Following this three-week voting period the RSG announced  that community pharmacy contractors have voted overwhelmingly in support of its proposals for the future of PSNC and the LPCs.

Contractors representing a total of 7601 ODS Codes voted on the proposals, this is 68.3% of the pharmacies in England. Of those contractors, a total of 6732 or 88.6% of the votes cast were in favour of the proposals. 

Read more information and find out about next steps 

Contractor briefing events and support

To help contractors to understand the proposals, the RSG plans held several contractor briefing events during the pre-vote period in May, including three national contractor briefing events and seven regional briefing events: one per NHS region. 

Information about these events is available below and on the RSG website here.

The RSG has produced two short animations which give an overview of the proposals and the case for change. These are less than four minutes long each, and should provide a useful introduction into the RSG and its proposals for those who are short on time.

Contractors are also encouraged to submit questions about the proposals directly to the RSG via the following form. The RSG will publish the answers to all of the questions submitted on the proposals page of the RSG website at the end of each week.

You Said, We Did

Contractors and LPCs were given the opportunity to express their thoughts about the RSG Programme Design Principles and RSG Draft Programme Plan at two events in May. The feedback helped shape the development of the final programme which was presented at the pharmacy sector event on Monday 14th June mentioned above.

Feedback from this event will also be examined and taken into consideration for RSG work in the future.

Meetings, Minutes and Agendas

Find all the RSG meetings, minutes, and agendas for 2020-22 here. This is also where you can find information on upcoming meetings.

Past Events

Pharmacy Sector Webinar – Monday 14th June (date now passed)

Following on from an independent review looking at the roles of PSNC and LPCs last year, the Pharmacy Representation Review Steering Group (RSG) has appointed programme management advisors (The Berkeley Partnership) to look at how to make improvements happen. The RSG and team from Berkeley shared their final programme plan with the sector at a webinar held on Monday 14th June.

The webinar was open to all pharmacy contractors and teams, and focused on:

• Key principles for how the transformation programme will be run and how decisions will be governed;
• How the RSG will engage with key stakeholder groups from both within and outside the pharmacy sector;
• The final high-level plan and timeline of activities through to 2022
• When the RSG will be seeking input from stakeholders

If you were unable to attend the webinar, you can watch the on-demand video recording and download a copy of the slide deck.

Future models

Between the end of July and the beginning of August, the Pharmacy Review Steering Group (RSG) conducted ten online focus groups with contractors LPCs, trade body representatives and wider stakeholders on the future roles of national and local representative and support organisations.

Those who were unable to attend one of these focus groups are encouraged to read these slides

August Update and Podcast Launch

As well as providing an August 2021 Update of current work, the Pharmacy Representation Review Steering Group (RSG) has published a one-page summary of its wider work programme, which includes information about how contractors can get involved, and the proposed timing of the contractor vote on the RSG proposals for the future of pharmacy representation.

The RSG has also published its first podcast about the work underway to improve the representation and support of NHS Community Pharmacy.

• Read the August 2021 update
• Read the summary of the RSG’s work
• Listen to the RSG podcast

You can find out more about the work of the RSG by reading the frequently asked questions (FAQs) document here.

Other Updates 

Visit the RSG website for more updates including a recent statement on PSNC and LPC elections.