As part of its public health functions for 2025/26, NHS England plans to expand the Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) immunisation programme to include up to 200 community pharmacies in targeted areas.
This follows the launch of an early adopter initiative in September 2024, where 50 community pharmacy sites in the East of England were commissioned to offer RSV vaccinations.
Malcolm Harrison, chief executive of the Company Chemists’ Association (CCA), welcomed the expansion and urged the NHS to accelerate the rollout across more pharmacy sites.
“Pharmacies can increase access and convenience for patients so they can receive vaccines when and where they want them,” he said.
Harrison pointed out community pharmacies’ excellent track record of administering the flu and Covid-19 vaccines.
“Pharmacies have delivered over a quarter of Covid-19 vaccines to date, and increased patient access, particularly for underserved communities,” he said.
He further advocated for pharmacies to be commissioned to deliver a a wider range of NHS vaccines nationally—including RSV, pneumonia, shingles, meningitis, and routine childhood immunisations
“Taken together, we estimate that this could free up 10 million GP appointments each year,” he said.
“Alongside existing pharmaceutical services, this expansion would increase access and give patients greater choice.”
“This is especially important as vaccine uptake remains a concern, especially amongst underserved and vaccine-hesitant cohorts,” he added.
Under the updated public health functions agreement, NHS England aims to ensure that everyone aged 75 to 79 years old on 1 September 2024 is offered RSV vaccination by 31 August 2025.
It will also continue the ongoing catch-up and year-round RSV programme offer for those turning 75 years old and pregnant women (from 28 weeks).
The agreement outlines how the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care delegates responsibility for certain public health functions to NHS England. These include:
NHS England has been delegated responsibility for securing the provision of the following services:
- National immunisation programmes
- Population and targeted screening programmes
- Public health services for children and adults in secure and detained settings
- Sexual assault services
- Child health information services
This is in addition to NHS England’s health service functions under the National Health Service Act 2006.
This agreement aims to improve population health outcomes and reduce health inequalities by continuously developing and delivering these services.
