The Royal Pharmaceutical Society has launched a survey to determine whether its membership base is "representative of the profession" by gathering data on equality, diversity and inclusion.

The professional leadership body said the study will amass data on factors including age, race, sex, gender reassignment, disability, religion, sexual orientation, martial and civil partnership and maternity status.

The RPS said data gathered “will be benchmarked against” the registrant data of the General Pharmaceutical Council “to find out if the membership of RPS is representative of the profession” and to “develop plans to serve members better by removing barriers to engagement".

The RPS said the survey was “completely anonymous and optional” for its members but those who choose to take part will need to enter their email address and membership number.

“We’re committed to making inclusion and diversity central to the profession, celebrating and encouraging diverse voices across pharmacy for the benefit of all, in line with our inclusion and diversity strategy," it said.