Hub and Spoke Regulation Changes

Regulations permitting hub and spoke dispensing between different retail pharmacy businesses have come into effect today (1st October 2025). 

Key requirements for spoke pharmacies 

An NHS pharmacy (spoke) may subcontract core dispensing activities to a hub pharmacy, as part of hub and spoke arrangements, only if certain requirements are met. The contractor (spoke) must, for example: 

1. Take reasonable steps to ensure that the owner of the hub pharmacy is a fit and proper person to carry out the core dispensing functions on their behalf. 
2. Give notice to their integrated care board (ICB) of the hub and spoke arrangements (using the NHS England-approved notification form), generally not less than 28 days before the hub and spoke arrangements are intended to commence. 
3. Ensure the core dispensing functions are to be sub-contracted under written hub and spoke arrangements (with the hub pharmacy owner) that include specific provisions as detailed in the NHS England-approved notification form and confirm those in the notification to the ICB. 
4. Display a notice for patients, conspicuously, at the registered pharmacy (or on the pharmacy website for online dispensing, e.g. DSP pharmacies), which contains the name of the hub pharmacy owner and the address of the hub and a brief statement of the general effect of the hub and spoke arrangements. 
5. Comply with the requirements of the information gateway by, for example, displaying an appropriate notice to patients at the pharmacy and ensuring all staff maintain the confidentiality of the patient information. The pharmacy’s privacy notice should also be updated. 
6. Ensure the dispensed medicine is labelled with the spoke’s name and address, and the date on which the hub assembled, or part assembled the medicine (as well as the usual information required on a dispensing label). 
7. Ensure that if a hub pharmacist changes a supply (as the spoke pharmacist might), the final decision on the supply is made by the supervising spoke pharmacist, even if this confirms the decision made by the hub pharmacist. (An example of this is using the original pack dispensing +/-10% provision.) 
8. Give notice in writing to the ICB of any suspension or permanent discontinuation of hub and spoke arrangements, before this occurs or as soon as reasonably practicable afterwards. 

Completed notification forms need to be sent to frimleyicb.southeastcommunitypharmacy@nhs.net

Full information is outlined in the CPE briefing: Briefing 020/25: Hub and Spoke dispensing between different retail pharmacy businesses