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A report published today by Pharmacist Support lays out the financial and mental health assistance it has given pharmacists, former pharmacists and pharmacy students and reveals it awarded nearly £700,000 in grants between 2020 and 2024.

The report said the charity provided 592 grants during that period, an 82 per cent increase over those four years. It also said it provided £193,528 in funds to 40 students under its student bursary scheme over the same period.

The charity said there was a 27 per cent increase in bursary applications last year when £35,000 was awarded to students in financial difficulty.

23 per cent increase in counselling referrals

Pharmacist Support also launched a new urgent support grant which it said offered “fast financial relief for essential unexpected costs” while there was a 23 per cent increase in counselling referrals and 439 funded counselling sessions were delivered.

Referrals to its Listening Friends support scheme, which allows people to speak in confidence and anonymously to a trained volunteer pharmacist, rose by 15 per cent and saw 62 individuals receive peer support.

2024 also brought challenges

Pharmacist Support said that “despite the successes, 2024 also brought challenges”. Its finance manager Gill Darling, “whose contribution and legacy are deeply felt across the team and trustees”, died.

The charity also said mental health within the pharmacy workforce “remained a serious concern”, with 87 per cent of pharmacists at high risk of burnout and 41 per cent saying their mental health “was rarely or never prioritised in their workplace environment”.

It said its 2025-2030 strategy will see it raise awareness of the work it does and build on its offering, having won two awards last year; the Charity Learning Consortium Excellence in Workforce Wellbeing award and the Culture Pioneer Wellbeing award.

“In 2025, we will implement a comprehensive marketing and communications strategy that delivers clear, consistent messages about the charity and its services to our target audiences,” Pharmacist Support said, insisting it will grow its podcast, revitalise its ACTNow wellbeing campaign, “build relationships with supporters and donors” and launch a scheme with Rebel Finance School to help people manage their finances.

“As we close this chapter, we’re proud of what we’ve achieved,” said Esther Sadler-Williams, chair of Trustees of Pharmacist Support, “particularly how we’ve responded to the growing needs of the profession, and excited to launch our new strategy, which builds on this momentum and sets out a bold vision for the next five years.”