Report details gap in health services in Cramlington after Lloyds Pharmacy closed town's last open-late branch

The Lloyds Pharmacy within the Manor Walks Sainsbury’s store closed on June 13, 2023, meaning there are now no pharmacies open in Cramlington after 6pm on weekdays or Saturdays, or at all on Sundays.

A report will be presented to Northumberland County Council’s Health and Well-being Board on Thursday, August 10 asking them to vote to declare “that there is a gap in essential, advanced, additional, and locally commissioned pharmaceutical services in Cramlington” as a result.

The report said: “The closure of a 100-hour pharmacy in Cramlington leaves a gap for patients, public, and healthcare professionals between 6pm and 9pm on weekdays, when GP practices in the area are providing extra hours and the public are being encouraged to use pharmacies to relieve pressure on other primary care services.”

According to the report, the nearest pharmacy open late is 4.2 miles away from the former Lloyds Pharmacy site, with patients needing a prescription dispensed or seeking medical advice having to travel to Blyth.

The Boots on Maddison Street in Blyth, currently open until 11pm Monday to Saturday, has applied to reduce its opening hours and close at 9pm, which the report says may also impact Cramlington residents.

The report continued: “As the pharmacy regulations have changed, new 100-hour contracts are no longer awarded, with 40 hour contracts being given to applicants who offer to fill identified gaps in services.

“To try to ensure that any applicant includes evenings as part of their core hours, we recommend identifying the evenings as a gap in pharmacy services in Cramlington, although it must be recognised that with the current funding crisis this gap may not attract any applicants.”

The report acknowledges plans are in place to open a new pharmacy in the new campus currently under construction at Northumbria Specialist Emergency Care Hospital in Cramlington, but says this will not open until 2025.

It also details that Lloyds has found buyers for its Berwick, Blyth, and Bedlington pharmacies, but that buyers are yet to be found for its branches in Ashington, Tweedmouth, and Cramlington’s Brockwell Centre.