Dozens of Lloyds Pharmacy branches across the North East and beyond are at risk of being closed down, according to reports.
The chain is the UK's second-largest pharmacy chain behind Boots, with around 1,300 shops throughout the UK, including dozens in Newcastle, Sunderland, County Durham and Northumberland. Lloyds had already announced earlier this year that will be closing all of its 237 pharmacies located in Sainsbury’s supermarkets by the end of the year, including those in Team Valley, Durham, Heaton and two in Sunderland.
The closures inside Sainsbury's will put around 2,000 jobs on the line UK-wide, and the news that the entire UK store base is at risk of closure is another blow for the high street. Lloyds, with 17,000 employees across the business, dispenses around 150m prescriptions a year.
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Lloyds Pharmacy’s parent company bought Sainsbury’s then 280-store pharmacy chain in 2015 for £125m when it transferred around 2,500 staff to its business. Private equity firm Aurelius snapped up Lloyds Pharmacy last year, and according to The Sun, the potential sale or closure of all of the pharmacies has come about after Aurelius launched a strategic review of its entire UK store base.
A spokesperson for Lloyds told The Sun: “Lloyds Pharmacy regularly reviews its pharmacy estate to ensure it is operating sustainably and any decision to sell stores is taken in the interests of patients, colleagues and the business. At all times, patient safety remains our top priority ensuring that our customers and patients are always able to access vital prescriptions, health advice, products and services.”
At the time of the Sainsbury's announcement, Kevin Birch, chief executive officer of Lloyds, said: “This decision has not been an easy one and we understand that our patients and customers may have questions about how the change will affect them. We would like to thank them for their continued support and assure them that we are committed to providing a smooth transition over the coming months.“
The full list of Lloyds pharmacies due to close inside Sainsbury's stores is:
- Heaton
- Team Valley
- Whitley Bay
- Cramlington
- Sunderland
- Sunderland North
- Durham
Nigel Swift, the deputy managing director of Phoenix UK, which owns the Numark and Rowlands pharmacy groups, told The Guardian that the Lloyds closures had to be a wake-up call for the Government. “This announcement is the clearest possible sign of the dire situation facing community pharmacy in England as a result of insufficient Government funding," he said. "At a time when the NHS is in crisis, the community pharmacy network is needed more than ever before. These closures will put even more pressure on already overstretched nearby pharmacies and dilute patient access to essential healthcare services, particularly in deprived communities.”
A spokesperson for Lloyds told The Sun: “Lloyds Pharmacy regularly reviews its pharmacy estate to ensure it is operating sustainably and any decision to sell stores is taken in the interests of patients, colleagues and the business. At all times, patient safety remains our top priority ensuring that our customers and patients are always able to access vital prescriptions, health advice, products and services.”
A spokeskesperson for the Department of Health and Social Care said that about 80% of people live within 20 minutes of a community pharmacy: “Community pharmacies play a vital role in our healthcare system and we back them with £2.6bn a year. On top of this, we have announced a further £100m investment in the sector to help support services,” they said.
The full list of stores at risk of closure is:
Newcastle
- Beaconsfield Street
- Adj Prospect Medical Group, Westgate Road
- West Road, Newcastle
Welbeck Road
- Benton Road
Chapel House Health Centre
Gateshead
- Watson Street, Teams
- Springwell Road, Wrekenton
Harras Bank, Birtley
Pattinson Drive, Ryton
Rockwood Hill Road, Ryton
North Tyneside
- Portacabin Battlehill Medical Centre, Wallsend
Hawkeys Lane Health Centre, North Shields
Albion Road, North Shields
Monkseaton Health Centre
Northumberland
- Market Street, Cramlington
- Glebe Road, Bedlington
- Norham Road, Ashington
- Brockwell Centre, Cramlington
- Deleval Terrace, Blyth
- Market Street, West View Cramlington, Dudley
- Hexham General Hospital
Sunderland
- Heworth Road, Concord
- Independance Square, Washington
- Westerhope Road, Barmston
- Sea Road, Fulwell
South Tyneside
- New George Street, South Shields
County Durham
- Station Road, Consett
- Clifford Road, Stanley
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