As I saw in the new year last week with my family, in beautiful Devon, I felt a real sense of excitement about the year ahead, and what PAGB are working towards as we continue to advocate for self-care. 2026 represents a year of transformation and opportunity for the consumer healthcare sector and pharmacy. Looking ahead, I wanted to share some insights that reflect a sector poised to play a pivotal role in reshaping how care is accessed and delivered across the UK.

This year is set to be a defining year for pharmacy. The shift of services from hospitals to neighbourhoods, as outlined in the 10 Year Health Plan, is gathering pace. Pharmacies can and should be seen as central to the nation’s health, acting as the “front door” to care – accessible, innovative and supporting patients to feel empowered to self-care. Across the Government’s commitments to transform healthcare, community pharmacists are expected to take on broader responsibilities, supporting people locally and helping to ease the pressures on hospitals and GPs.

This will be exciting to see, because as we know, over-the-counter (OTC) medicines already support people to self-care, and as a result, save the NHS £6.4 billion per year in avoided doctors’ appointments and prescription costs. But with further emphasis on pharmacy to help ease the pressure on the NHS, and key developments on the horizon this year – independent prescribing graduates entering the workforce for the first time along with the continuation of the Pharmacy First programme – the role of pharmacy can become even more important. Offering a wider range of clinical services and hopefully even more OTC products, pharmacies can serve as a one-stop-shop for minor ailments and self-care as well as for wider general healthcare needs.

The NHS Plan recognises self-care as a foundational pillar, particularly within digital, neighbourhood, and preventative health agendas. This shift doesn’t just benefit patients, who gain more autonomy and quicker access to advice and treatments; it also supports the sustainability of the NHS by reducing unnecessary prescriptions and appointments. The OTC medicines sector is a key driver in this evolution. As the year progresses, we want to see further reclassification of medicines from prescription-only (POM) to pharmacy (P) – a move that could save the NHS up to £1.4 billion annually. These changes will widen patient access, increase choice, and support the role of pharmacies as health hubs within communities. Further to the announcement by DHSC last year on reclassification categories, PAGB has continued to work closely with our members to see how we can progress reclassification even further. We have released a new briefing calling for further changes to widen access to new medicines. Working with the MHRA and our members, we’re also taking steps to refine and strengthen the current process, enabling new submissions that will expand the range of medicines available through pharmacies.

Digital innovation is another important cornerstone of the NHS transformations in 2026. With the NHS App now established as a “front door” to healthcare, it will offer self-care advice and signpost users to reliable consumer healthcare products – an initiative that PAGB has championed for years. Digital tools are also recognised for their potential to reduce health inequalities and provide timely, accessible information to all. In a new report published in September 2025 on Unlocking the digital front door: delivering digital self-care through NHS reform, PAGB highlights strong public demand for trusted self-care tools and sets out practical recommendations that can be delivered at pace to drive early progress in 2026. These include supporting the self-care content and offer within the NHS App, improving digital triage via the NHS App and website to support effective self-care, and equipping community pharmacists with digital tools and access. Timely delivery of these digital commitments will be critical to the success of the reforms, and it will be vital that the Government work collaboratively with industry, who stand ready and willing to help, to agree and develop the information and guidance to be shared through the NHS App.

I think 2026 offers a unique opportunity for both pharmacies and the consumer healthcare sector to step up as leaders in accessible, effective care. In 2025, we were actively inputting into the implementation of the 10 Year Health Plan and will be continuing this activation in 2026, taking advantages of the opportunities to ensure the self-care policies within the three shifts can become reality.

So, there’s lots to come – expect to see PAGB continue to champion digital innovation, self-care, and widened access to medicines, working closely with industry leaders and Government to unlock the full potential of self-care and deliver key system-wide changes.