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The new Royal College has the potential to become a sustainable, inclusive and effective future model of pharmacy professional leadership to meet the aspirations of professionals working in pharmacy, and pharmacist and pharmacy technician trainees and students, for the benefit of patients and the public.

So said the UK Pharmacy Professional Leadership Advisory Board (UKPPLAB) in a statement issued today (February 12). However, the new Royal College of Pharmacy had to be ambitious and inclusive in its approach from the outset, the board said.

The UKPPLAB has made four recommendations that it says will secure progress on “shaping the strategy of the future Royal College of Pharmacy” to “support the development of a bold, eye-catching and attractive offer to pharmacists and pharmacy technicians for the benefit of patients and the public”.

The proposals would help shape the future Royal College to “create the opportunity for it to become an inclusive professional leadership home for all pharmacists, pharmacy technicians, pharmaceutical scientists, pharmacy trainees and students, and others”.

The recommendations are:

1. That the future Royal College should explicitly endorse the principles of the Vision and Common Purpose for Pharmacy Professional Leadership to which all the organisations on the Board have signed up and adopt them as foundational for its future strategy and all its activities
2. Service to patients and the public should be embedded in its processes and engagement, according to the Vision and Common Purpose for Patients and the Public
3. The Royal College should take the opportunity in its first few months of operation to mount an engagement exercise on outline proposals for its strategy, alongside the inclusion process
4. The new Royal College should prioritise the proposed strategic ambitions as early tangible actions in its first three years of operation, as well as the three-stage inclusion process.

The five strategic ambitions proposed by the UKPPLAB for the future Royal College to prioritise are:

1. Co-create a unified and inclusive professional home
2. Prioritise excellence and ambition in education, innovation, research and career development
3. Strengthen the collective voice of pharmacy professional leadership through collaboration
4. Renew relationships, enhancing engagement with members, potential members and wider stakeholders
5. Showcase and promote the best in pharmacy leadership.

The UKPPLAB has outlined a three-stage inclusion process and timelines as a next step to coincide with the launch of the Royal College. 

Commenting on the UKPPLAB statment, RPS president Claire Anderson and chief executive Paul Bennett said: “We believe that an inclusive and collaborative model of pharmacy professional leadership offers clear and significant benefits to both professionals and patients – and we applaud Sir Hugh and the UKPPLAB Board for their ambition and commitment to fostering a unified and inclusive future for pharmacy professional leadership.

“We have always said that the establishment of the new Royal College of Pharmacy is foundational – that it is a crucial first step in the journey but it is not the final destination. That’s why when we launch the royal college, scheduled for April, we will also announce a significant programme of engagement with our members about the future, including exploring the recommendations put forward by the Board.

“RPS Members, and those of APTUK and other specialist pharmacy groups which are part of the Board and may have Pharmacy Technicians in membership, must have the opportunity to explore these proposals in a meaningful way – particularly the proposed inclusion of pharmacy technicians as members of the royal college.

“Any proposals developed to be considered by our members will need to set out how both pharmacists and pharmacy technicians can retain distinct professional voices whilst working collectively to elevate pharmacy, while also addressing considerations around equity and governance.

“Decisions about the future must be based on discussion, consultation, and trust, and in the case of RPS, any proposals to change the criteria for full membership would require a positive Special Resolution Vote by the membership of the RPS and future royal college.”