GPhC to conduct annual survey of pharmacy students and trainees

Reapproval cycles will also be standardised across all pharmacy education and training programmes  

The General Pharmaceutical Council’s (GPhC) governing body has approved the proposed changes to enhance the education and training quality of pharmacists, pharmacy technicians and the wider pharmacy team.

The GPhC, which sets standards and requirements for pharmacy education, ensures these standards are upheld through a quality assurance process. A key element of this framework is the accreditation or recognition process for education and training providers.

The proposed enhancements include the introduction of an annual survey of students and trainees to gather their feedback on the quality of education and training they receive.

Additionally, the pharmacy regulator plans to improve the use of both internal and external data to strengthen the evidence base for reapproval events.

This new approach allows accreditation teams to review data such as student performance in the Oriel foundation training year National Recruitment Scheme (NRS) application tests and graduate performance in the GPhC Registration Assessment.

Reapproval cycles will also be standardised across all pharmacy education and training provision. This means pharmacy technician, support staff, independent prescribing, and overseas pharmacists’ assessment programmes (OSPAPs) will all follow a 6-year reaccreditation cycle, with a 3-year interim review.

Louise Edwards, chief strategy office at the GPhC, explained that the Council’s goal is to ensure that pharmacy education and training providers deliver high-quality programmes that meet GPhC standards and requirements.

This will ensure students and trainees gain “appropriate knowledge, skills and experience to provide high-quality care to patients and the public.”

Edwards emphasised that the changes represent a “shift in our way of working with education and training providers.”

“This updated approach will increase our engagement with the providers and give us and them more opportunities to discuss challenges and opportunities to raise the quality of their courses,” he said.

By collecting and analysing data regularly – including the annual survey of students and trainees –  the GPhC aims to enhance its ability to ensure standards are being met and to identify any areas of concern that may require further inquiry with the provider.

These changes are set to be implemented in the 2025/26 academic year.