Community pharmacies widen London blood pressure checks

Since early 2024, community pharmacies across North East London have stepped up day-to-day blood pressure checks under the NHS Community Pharmacy Blood Pressure Check Service, so adults who might never book a GP appointment are now being offered a quick clinic reading while collecting prescriptions or asking for over-the-counter advice.

A regional service report compiled for Community Pharmacy North East London in January 2024 shows that pharmacies there completed 23,000 clinic blood pressure checks between July and September 2023, around 23% above the national average for the same period, with follow-up readings electronically shared with local GP practices for possible diagnosis and treatment.

The same document records 41,316 checks delivered across all parts of the hypertension case-finding service in that period, with 6,794 people – about 16% of those tested – found to have high or very high blood pressure and 1,348 fitted with ambulatory monitors for more detailed 7-hour readings, illustrating how routine pharmacy contact is now being used to uncover hidden hypertension.

National context from the Health Survey for England 2021, published in May 2023, estimates that 30% of adults in England have hypertension and 15% have untreated high blood pressure, a pattern that leaves some boroughs with large numbers of people at increased risk of stroke and heart disease who may only have short interactions with the NHS when they step into a local chemist.

Guidance from NHS England describes the community pharmacy blood pressure checks as part of a wider cardiovascular disease prevention programme, with high street pharmacies encouraged to invite people aged over 40, and younger adults with a family history, for opportunistic checks that fit around their usual errands rather than requiring separate GP visits.

Local and national briefings highlight that this model is particularly significant for residents who work irregular hours, care for family members or have limited access to transport, because many pharmacies stay open into the evening and at weekends, offer walk-in assessments without appointments and operate in neighbourhoods where GP practices can be harder to reach at short notice.

21 November 2025 12:43 By London Health News Desk