The GPhC has said that registration exam candidates in Scotland “should be able” to sit the exam without crossing the border into England after exam provider Pearson Vue secured more test centre places. 

The past week has seen reports of many candidates struggling to book an exam sitting in their area, with particular concerns around Scottish candidates being forced to travel and the possibility of spreading Covid-19 infection.

However, the regulator announced last night (March 3) that it was working with Pearson to allocate Scottish test centre places to affected candidates “by the end of this week” and that booking confirmation emails will be sent out.

After a “technical glitch” on the Pearson website meant that candidates were mistakenly offered the option of an afternoon slot (the March 17-18 exam will consist of morning sittings only), GPhC chief Duncan Rudkin said anyone affected by this will be “rebooked into a new test centre place”.

Pearson told Pharmacy Network News that the glitch affected “a limited number of bookings,” with 60 out of over 2,700 applicants booked onto an afternoon slot.

Mr Rudkin added: “We have contacted the remaining candidates who have not yet booked to offer our help in finding them a place. There are still test centre places available across England and in Wales, so we are confident that everyone who wants to sit in March will be able to do so.

“We are also responding directly to candidates who have contacted us with any concerns or questions, including about the location of their sitting.”

Mr Rudkin has said he is “really sorry” for the issues exam candidates have faced when booking their exam.

“We are committed to reviewing the issues from this sitting and taking all possible steps to avoid these issues happening in the future,” he said.