Pharmacist initial education and training reforms: FAQs

Our standards set out the knowledge, skills, understanding and professional behaviours that students and trainee pharmacists must demonstrate to pass their initial education and training and join our register.

We have published new standards for education and training courses for pharmacists to make sure you’re equipped for future roles and can practise safely and effectively.

These standards will support newly registered pharmacists to play a much greater role in providing clinical care to patients, including prescribing medicines. The standards also set out the requirements for education providers running initial training programmes.

New standards for the initial education and training of pharmacists

Why have you introduced new standards for the initial education and training of pharmacists?

These standards will transform the education and training of pharmacists, so they can play a much greater role in providing clinical care to patients and the public from their first day on the register.

We have developed these standards to make sure pharmacist professionals are confident and capable of working in different teams across a variety of healthcare settings. We want them to be adaptable so they can meet the diverse and changing needs of patients.

What do the standards cover?

What are the key changes in the revised standards?

These standards introduce a number of important changes to make sure pharmacists are equipped for their future roles. These changes include:

incorporating the skills, knowledge and attributes for prescribing so pharmacists can independently prescribe from the point of registration
introducing a new set of learning outcomes to assess the full five years of education and training. This will help pharmacists to develop post registration.
emphasising the application of science in clinical practice
a greater focus on key skills needed for current and future roles, including professional judgement, management of risk, diagnostic and consultation skills (including for remote consultations)
making the fifth year of initial education and training a foundation training year with strengthened supervision, support and collaborative working between higher-education institutions, statutory education bodies and employers
having a greater emphasis on equality, diversity and inclusion to combat discrimination and address health inequalities

How do these standards take account of learnings from the Covid-19 pandemic?

We’ve reviewed the standards and outcomes to consider our learnings from the pandemic and got feedback from our advisory group on this issue. In response, we have made a number of changes to the standards, including putting more focus on:

collaborative working with other professional bodies and stakeholders
remote engagement and consultation with patients
person-centred care, including greater emphasis on addressing health inequalities and understanding communities and cultures

How do the new standards reflect the move to digital learning and remote consultation?

There is a key focus within the new standards on developing capable, confident pharmacy professionals who can provide person-centred care, both in person and through remote consultations.

In the new standards, we have included specific learning outcomes about digital learning and remote consultation. This includes keeping up to date with new technologies and using data and digital technologies to improve clinical outcomes and patient safety, complying with information governance principles.

What practical experience will people get during their education and training?

To achieve the learning outcomes, education and training courses will need to provide opportunities for their students to learn with other students from different health and care professions and provide experience in different pharmacy settings.

As students advance through their MPharm degree, they’ll be expected to demonstrate the learning outcomes to a greater depth, breadth and degree of complexity.

The foundation training year will give trainee pharmacists the chance to experience new situations so they can build on their knowledge and skills and demonstrate these with patients in clinical settings.

During the foundation training year, the standards also include a requirement to carry out at least 90 hours of supervised practice. The focus is on prescribing so they can achieve independent prescribing annotation once they have completed the foundation training year and registered with us.

MPharm degree

When and how will the new standards be implemented in MPharm courses?

In 2021/22 we started reaccrediting MPharm degrees to the new standards. This will take place over a period of three academic years to give higher-education institutions a degree of flexibility. Universities have been given staggered dates to revise their education and training programmes between the 2021/22 and 2023/24 academic years.

Higher education institutions have been asked to transfer all new students who started on an MPharm degree in 2021-22 or later to the new standards. This means that all students graduating from an accredited four-year MPharm degree in summer 2025 will have achieved the new four-year learning outcomes and be ready to enter the fully implemented foundation training year in 2025/26.

Why are admissions processes to the MPharm changing?

We have strengthened the admission requirements in the standards to:

make the selection processes fair and give all applicants the chance to demonstrate their ability and suitability to be a trainee pharmacist
identify and reduce discrimination in selection and admission processes
give applicants the guidance they need to make an informed application with clear selection criteria

Foundation training year

What is the foundation training year?

This is when a trainee pharmacist undertakes practical learning and training activities under supervision for 52 weeks. This is known as the foundation training year across all UK countries and recognised by all employers. It was previously known as the pre-registration training year.

The foundation training year offers on the job, practical training in a clinical setting. It supports trainees to build on their pharmacy knowledge, understanding, skills and behaviours, and previous experience, in preparation for registration.

The foundation training year involves NHS education commissioners, employers and higher-education institutions working together, with a clear set of accountabilities. This includes systems of quality management and quality control – with oversight from us and the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland. This means that trainees will receive enhanced support and supervision throughout the foundation training year.

Trainees complete at least 90 hours of supervised practice in prescribing during their foundation year, to strengthen their competence and allow them to achieve their independent prescriber annotation once they’re registered.

How is the foundation training year being implemented?

The foundation training year has been implemented for current trainees. We will continue to develop the content and format of the year, introducing changes over several years, and making improvements as quickly as possible.

The 2021 standards for the initial education and training of pharmacists will be fully implemented by 2025/26, once students who have graduated from MPharm degrees enter their foundation training year.