The National Pharmacy Association has issued advice to contractors on how they can withdraw from the 2025-26 Oriel trainee pharmacist placement programme amid concerns of an England-wide shortage of designated prescribing practitioners (DPPs).

From 2026, independent prescriber annotation will be a requirement for all newly qualified pharmacists, meaning that all employers offering foundation year placements will need to give trainees access to a DPP for 90 hours over the course of the placement.

Expressions of interest for the 2025-26 programme were accepted between January and March this year. The NPA said: “At the time, NHSE encouraged NPA members to express an interest even if they did not have full details of locations, clinical supervisors and designated prescribing practitioners. 

“However, under scrutiny by the NPA it has become increasingly apparent that access to a DPP in community pharmacy is becoming very difficult.

“Unless you already have someone in place, the likelihood of having access to a DPP in time for the start of the foundation year 2025-26 are slim.

“This could lead to unintended adverse consequences for the prospective pharmacist student, who would need to find another placement at very short notice, plus a risk to your reputation as a prospective training site for students.”

The NPA said contractors may want to “consider withdrawing from the Oriel scheme altogether,” advising them to contact Health Education England or their regional NHS lead before the end of the month if they wish to do so. 

“You have until the end of May before your details are exposed to the prospective students and therefore exposure to risk to you and your business,” said the NPA. 

Isle of Wight pharmacist David France described it as a “predictable consequence of rolling out prescribing qualifications for students before upskilling the existing workforce”. 

Primary Care Pharmacy Association president Graham Stretch urged contractors: “Before you pull out, reach out to your local NHSE WTE [Workforce, Training and Education] and ICS workforce team – DPP planning should be prioritised and coordinated.”