Published 23rd April 2018
There are 46 community pharmacies in Bexley:
- One of these is a “100 Hour” pharmacy and open for 100 hours per week
- One is a “distance selling” pharmacy; this pharmacy may not provide essential services to any person who is present, or in the vicinity of the pharmacy
- There are no dispensing appliance contractors (DACs) or GP dispensing practices
- The number of pharmacies per 100,000 population is below the London and England averages
- There is a choice of pharmacy in each locality
- There is good geographical alignment between GP surgeries and pharmacies
- Several pharmacies outside of our area are located within a 1 mile of the Bexley boundary; these improve access and increase the level of choice for our residents
- With respect to deprivation, there is pharmacy located close to each of areas with the highest levels of deprivation
- The areas with the highest population density are located in Clocktower and North Bexley localities. Clocktower has an above average number of pharmacies. Whilst North Bexley has a below average number of pharmacies, the most densely populated wards have an above average number of pharmacies
Access to pharmacy in Bexley
All 46 pharmacies are usually open between 9:30am to 5:30pm on week days; a small number close early on a Wednesday or a Thursday and others vary their hours dependent upon the day of the week.
8 (17%) pharmacies close for lunch; however, access remains reasonable. During extended hours 3 (7%) pharmacies, all in North Bexley, open by 8am. 19 (41%) remain open until 7pm or later. Of these 1 is a 100 hour pharmacy o 3 pharmacies told us they were considering extending their weekday hours. On Saturdays – 45 (98%) pharmacies open between 10am – 1pm; of these 23 (50%) remain open until 5pm; 2 pharmacies close for lunch.
Access is more limited during extended hours with only 3 pharmacies (2 in North Bexley and 1 in Clocktower) remaining open until 7pm or later; Residents may have to travel 3 – 4 miles to access a pharmacy, either within Bexley or to one of the 7 out of area pharmacies which remain open until 7pm or later.
On Sundays – 5 (11%) pharmacies open for between 6 and 14.5 hours; these are located in North Bexley (3) and Clocktower (2). There is no access to pharmacy services in Frognal. However, 9 out of area pharmacies open. Large pharmacies (>280m2 ) are not permitted to open for more than 6 hours; this constrains access on Sundays.
Bank Holidays – An informal rota is in place for Bank Holidays but Residents may also access pharmacy services in neighbouring boroughs.
Every three years Bexley completes a Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment.
This is a link to the current draft of the Pharmaceutical Needs Assessment.
