The President of the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society NI (the Society), Dr Geraldine O’Hare, has welcomed the Professional Standards Authority’s (the PSA) review of the Society’s performance for 2024/25, which has shown an increase in standards met in comparison with the PSA’s report on the Society’s performance in 2023/24.
The PSA applies 18 standards to assess health and social care regulators. In the previous year’s reporting period, the Society was assessed to have met 11 of the 18 standards and took immediate action to remedy its performance. In this year’s report, sufficient progress has been made so that the Society has been found to have met 14 of the 18 standards.
The response to the standards which were not met is detailed below.
Standard 2
PSA: The PSNI did not meet Standard 2 last year because, for much of the year, we saw the PSNI make little progress on a variety of key projects such as publication of a new Corporate Strategy, the review of The Code, guidance for registrants, education reform and improvements to its website. The PSNI has addressed most of the issues we identified last year, but there was evidence of it failing to prioritise and deliver in certain respects again this year. The PSNI’s decision not to publish its 2025-30 Corporate Strategy, because of the uncertainty around the future of pharmacy regulation in Northern Ireland, was further evidence for us to conclude that the PSNI had not met Standard 2 this year. We note that the PSNI subsequently published its Corporate Strategy on 24 February 2026.
The Society’s response: The Society was pleased to launch its new Code of Conduct, Ethics and Performance on 26 January 2026, and, on 24 February 2026, launched its new Corporate Strategy 2025-30. It has also significantly enhanced and improved its website in areas of guidance and education for registrants, all of which have been well received by registrants and stakeholders.
Standard 3
PSA: The Society has made progress against Standard 3 this year, underpinned by the publication of its Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Strategy. However, several significant gaps we identified in our last report have not been addressed – notably regarding the Society not using data and evidence to identify unfairness in processes and decisions, not using research to inform its work, and not publishing its own EDI data, research and analysis. The PSNI met one out of four outcomes within this Standard; we therefore concluded that the PSNI had not met Standard 3.
The Society’s response: The PSA acknowledged progress across all four expected outcomes regarding EDI, but not sufficient progress in three of these for the Society to have met this standard overall. The Society accepts that there is still work to be done on meeting this standard in 2025/26 and will use the PSA’s feedback on this matter as a roadmap to make further improvements. The Society is committed to meeting the highest possible standards of equality, diversity and inclusion.
Standard 7
PSA: For several years, we reported on the need for the PSNI to understand and manage the risks arising from online pharmacy, and last year we concluded that the PSNI had not met Standard 7 because of the lack of progress to publish guidance for registrants on this issue. The PSNI launched a consultation exercise on draft guidance regarding prescription delivery and collection in November 2025, but this is narrow in scope and is not an update on the PSNI’s 2016 standards and guidance on internet pharmacy services. We have also seen little progress in terms of the PSNI’s understanding of the risks around online pharmacy during this review period. We therefore concluded that the PSNI had not met Standard 7.
The Society’s response: In 2025, the Society undertook an extensive programme of consultations on standards and guidance. This was acknowledged by the PSA in its monitoring report and the Society recognises that there is further progress to be made in relation to guidance around online pharmacy. The risks associated with online pharmacy are understood, and the Society works closely with partner agencies across NI and the UK to monitor this risk. Guidance on this risk area will be considered during 2026.
Standard 15
PSA: The PSNI has met four out of five of our fitness to practise (FTP) standards this year. We concluded that it had not met Standard 15 because it was still taking too long to deal with FTP cases. While the PSNI had succeeded in reducing the number of open cases overall, the improvement was largely confined to cases at the earliest part of the FTP process, and the number of open older cases remained high compared to previous years.
The Society’s response: It is encouraging that the Society has met four of the five fitness to practise standards this year. We acknowledge that some cases have not proceeded in as a timely manner as hoped and required. On occasion, these delays are caused by investigations by third-party organisations and not fully within the remit of the Society to progress at a given time. The Society welcomes improvements made in closing cases at an earlier stage.
Commenting, Dr O’Hare said:
“I am pleased to see an improvement in our performance, which is a testament to the hard work and dedication of all staff and Council colleagues.
Whilst the Society is encouraged by the progress and improvements being made, we are of course, disappointed not to have met all of the standards. The Society is confident that, with the appropriate funding and resources in place, it can further improve on its performance for the 2025/26 reporting period.
The Society’s Chief Executive Officer, Canice Ward said:
“As I took up post as CEO in March of 2025 I spoke of my determination to continue the progress my colleagues had already begun to make in improving the performance of the Society.
“We have worked hard throughout last year to keep that momentum going, and this performance review speaks to the commitment shown by everyone to deliver the best possible regulation of the pharmacy profession in Northern Ireland.
“This report acknowledges improvement in performance across all seven of the standards that we failed to meet in the 2025 Monitoring Report, and although we haven’t made sufficient progress in four of those seven, I still feel that we should recognise the good work done by everyone in the Society throughout the past year.
“We acknowledge that there is still room for improvement as we strive to meet all 18 standards for 2025/26, but it is right for the entire organisation to take some pride in the progress made last year.”