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Pharmacies in Leicester and Northamptonshire will take part in the Government’s obesity pathway innovation programme (OPIP) which has been set up to increase weight management support, particularly for people in deprived areas and black, South Asian and rural communities.

The OPIP, which is receiving up to £50 million in funding from the Government and £35 million from the pharmaceutical company Lilly, is running 12 projects across the UK to ensure more people can access treatment for obesity.

Independent Community Pharmacist understands pharmacies are currently being chosen by the Government and Lilly to take part. It is unclear how many pharmacies will participate but an initial six neighbourhood hubs will be set up in pharmacies and gyms to give patients weight management support.

“Children and adults can be referred online, or through their GP, school, or council, standing to benefit from healthy living and lifestyle advice, adolescent specific apps, and, where clinically appropriate, weight loss medication,” the Government said.

Up to 3,300 families in Kent will receive “round-the-clock AI powered advice on healthy eating, activity, sleep and stress, straight to their phone via WhatsApp”, while in Norfolk, Suffolk and north-east Essex, patients will get quicker care “through AI-assisted triage”.

“This will mean people worried about their weight being able to fill in a short online health check from home, matching them to the right NHS support, whether that’s advice from a dietitian, or specialist clinical care,” the Government said.

Patients in Coventry and Warwickshire will have access to a new smartphone app which will provide health information, practical tools and lifestyle advice.

In Birmingham, Solihull and the Black Country, patients will be able to refer themselves, or be referred by their GP or a pharmacist, to weight management support via “a website that works in over 18 languages” where they will be assessed by a “specialist team.” Projects are also being rolled out in South London,Dorset, Lincolnshire, Lanarkshire, Midlothian.

In Northern Ireland, patients will be able to avoid waiting for a GP appointment by referring themselves and working with an NHS clinician to set personal goals. The Government said patients in Wales will “have one clear route into NHS weight management support in English or Welsh wherever they live”.

The Company Chemists’ Association chief executive Malcolm Harrison said OPIP “will make a real difference locally and provide valuable evidence for how community pharmacy can support people living with obesity”.

However, he urged the Government to commission a national pharmacy obesity service.

“To deliver lasting impact and enable wider rollout, any services must be backed by sustainable, long-term funding,” he said, describing the programme as “welcome recognition of the important role community pharmacy can play in delivering accessible, neighbourhood-based weight management support”.

Harrison added: “Pharmacies are already supporting people safely and effectively, both in store and online. As highly accessible and trusted healthcare settings, they are ideally placed to help expand NHS pathways and reach people,  creating much needed NHS capacity and providing access to those who may otherwise struggle to access support.”

According to the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, 64.5 per cent of adults aged 18 and over in England were estimated to be overweight or living with obesity from 2023 to 2024.