Contractors can apply for funding from the community pharmacy technician apprenticeship programme (CPTAP) for 2026 later this month.

The programme funds places for pre-registration trainee pharmacy technician’s (PTPTs) to complete their apprenticeship training in a community pharmacy.

NHS England (NHSE) Workforce, Training & Education (WT&E) is offering £15,505 per trainee per year for two years to community pharmacies, based on the PTPT working full time at a minimum of 30 hours a week including study time.

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Funding is available for one PTPT per registered pharmacy group per NHSE region, as it has been restricted by NHSE to ensure “equitable allocation of programme resources, prevent duplication of awards across connected companies, and maintain fairness and transparency within the funding process”.

The NHSE regions are the East of England, London, Midlands, North East and Yorkshire, North West, South East and South West, and each one will have a fixed number of available places.

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Funding applications open on April 27 and close on May 18, with contractors told of the outcome of their application the week of June 22.

Skills4Pharmacy founder Amerjit Singh said the CPTAP is “one of the most meaningful workforce investments community pharmacy has seen in recent years” and helps contractors to grow their teams “without the financial strain that often prevents long term workforce planning”.

Priorities

Community pharmacies who have never previously received NHSE PTPT funding will be prioritised if the programme is oversubscribed, following those who last received funding in or before 2023/24, then 2024/25, and finally the 2025/26 financial years.

The funding is available only for new PTPTs and they must be enrolled onto the CPTAP by September 30.

NHSE’s guidance says those working part-time hours will considered on a case-by-case basis within regions.

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It says developing the pharmacy technician workforce in community pharmacy aligns with changes to legislation that allows pharmacy technicians to work under patient group directions (PGDs).

It also follows the increasing number of clinical services offered in community pharmacy, and as new services are piloted in NHSE’s independent prescribing pathfinder projects.

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Singh says the value of the CPTAP exceeds the “fiscal return achieved from delivering the mandatory Pharmacy First consultations” as it helps deliver “sustainable operational and clinical benefits that extend well beyond a single funding cycle”.

“From our experience, contractor confidence in the programme is growing,” he added.

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“It is a strategic investment in the future resilience of community pharmacy, helping businesses build capable, skilled teams at a time when capacity pressures remain intense.”

It follows a previous NHSE pharmacy technician workforce expansion programme that had its last cohort in 2023/24 as it funded 1512 PTPTs since the original pilot in 2019/20.

In July, the Level 3 pharmacy technician apprenticeship in England had 2,320 starts which made it the 30th most popular apprenticeship.