University Well-coming for new on-campus pharmacy
This is the first campus-based pharmacy in the UK linked to a School of Pharmacy, and for this reason, provides some very exciting opportunities for our students.
University Well-coming for new on-campus pharmacy and training facilities at Keele
• £130,000 investment set to benefit local community as well as students
• Creation of a new state of the art training facility and pharmacy are further enhancements to the training and education excellence for Keele pharmacy students
The UK’s largest independent pharmacy chain, Well, has invested in Staffordshire, with the opening of a brand new 800sqft pharmacy store located on-campus at Keele University – along with a new state-of-the-art training facility at the university’s pharmacy school.
With the creation of ten new jobs, Well has invested a total of £100,000 in the new Community Pharmacy clinical service which is expected to help 10,000 patients annually, serving as an ‘on-campus’ community pharmacy facility and service for pharmacy products, along with full pharmacy service and advice available to all in the community and campus.
The branch will not only serve students and staff on campus but also the local community who regularly use the campus facilities such as the existing post office. The new pharmacy will also provide a prescription collection and delivery service to residents living in the surrounding areas and where required for patient convenience.
The new pharmacy is the first to be established by Well since business was acquired for £620 million by new-owners, the Bestway Group, and subsequently re-branded from The Co-operative Pharmacy to ‘Well’ earlier this year.
Well, which has 780 pharmacies across the UK, has also established a new partnership with Keele University’s Pharmacy School to provide enhanced pharmaceutical training opportunities for students.
This includes providing students training to be pharmacists with part-time opportunities to work in the new pharmacy and an additional investment of £30,000 to create a practice suite to support student learning, which includes a mock dispensary and seven consultation rooms.
Keele is one of the UK's leading campus-based University communities, with over 10,000 students and around 850 academic staff and has been recognised as the highest placed University in the National Student Survey for UK Universities providing a Undergraduate Pharmacy Training MPharm degree. Keele is also one of the largest post graduate pharmacy training schools in the UK.
It has a well-established school of pharmacy with two undergraduate courses; a four year MPharm programme, and a 3 year BSc course in Pharmaceutical Science, Technology and Pharmaceutical Business Management.
As the new partnership develops, the aim is to offer Keele University students fast-track employment opportunities, with qualified pharmacists working for Well, along with further enhanced clinical work experience placements at the 21 pharmacies located in the wider Stoke-on-Trent area.
John Nuttall, CEO of Well, said: “This major investment with the opening of a new pharmacy and training facilities at Keele University underlines our commitment to not only to growing the business over the next five years, but the important role we can play in relieving some of the pressure faced by frontline NHS services.
“We have worked closely with the University’s Pharmacy School to create an outstanding new facility that will help equip students with the knowledge and skills essential for a successful career, especially as pharmacists play an increasingly important role as the first point of advice for the public on their healthcare and wellbeing.
“We believe the new facilities will be a major asset for the university and provide a high-quality, accessible and convenient pharmacy service for the local community.”
Professor Nigel Ratcliffe, head of pharmacy at Keele University, said: ““This is the first campus-based pharmacy in the UK linked to a School of Pharmacy, and for this reason, provides some very exciting opportunities for our students.
“By offering practical experience to students studying at the University, we are better placed to equip the next generation of pharmacists with both the knowledge and personal skills required for the changing role of the community pharmacist in society. We are very pleased to be working with Well on this exciting development.”
Key information about the new Well pharmacy:
• Location: Well pharmacy, Unit 4, Students' Union Building, Keele University, ST5 5BG
• Opening hours: 8.30am - 5.30pm on Monday to Friday; 11am – 1pm on Saturdays; closed on Sundays.
• Parking: The new pharmacy has six dedicated parking spaces for customers, with free parking for the first 30 minutes.
• Opening date: Monday 17 August 2015
As a provider of primary healthcare, Well pharmacies are here to save customers trips to their GP, local hospital A&E or help them make healthy lifestyle changes.
In addition to dispensing prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines, Well’s professional pharmacists provide personalised healthcare and wellbeing and valued products, in a friendly and compassionate way so that every customer can make the most of their health.
Well pharmacists offer confidential advice and products for customer’s wellbeing, minor ailments, specialist health services such as smoking cessation and weight management and management of medicines. For more information about Well, see www.well.co.uk
Notes to editors:
About Well
• Well is the new name for the Co-operative Pharmacy, which has been at the heart of British communities since 1945 – and following its £620million acquisition from The Co-operative Group, by Bestway Group in October 2014, is now the UK’s largest independent pharmacy chain.
• With 780 branches across the UK, Well dispenses more than 73 million prescriptions every year and employs over 7,000 people in the UK.
• As well as dispensing prescriptions and over-the-counter medicines, Well’s professional pharmacists provide personalised healthcare and wellbeing and valued products, in a friendly and compassionate way so that every customer can make the most of their health. Its comprehensive services are provided by professional pharmacists, many of which are free of charge.
• Well pharmacists offer confidential advice and products for customer’s wellbeing, minor ailments, specialist health services such as smoking cessation and weight management and management of medicines. As a provider of primary healthcare Well pharmacies are here to save customers trips to their GP, local hospital A&E or help them make healthy lifestyle changes
• For pharmacy opening times or to find out more about Well, see: www.well.co.uk