Thousands more women across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight are accessing contraception through their local pharmacy, as NHS figures reveal a significant rise in the use of High Street services.
The latest figures show Hampshire & Isle of Wight is among the top-performing NHS areas in England for delivering contraception consultations through community pharmacies, while also recording the largest increase in appointments across the South East.
The Pharmacy Contraception Service allows women to receive confidential advice from a pharmacist or trained pharmacy technician before being provided with free oral contraception on the same day, without needing an appointment with a GP or sexual health clinic.
Across the South East, 97% of community pharmacies are now signed up to the scheme, with more than 140,000 contraception consultations delivered between April 2025 and March 2026.
A further 30,000 emergency contraception consultations have been carried out since that service was introduced in October 2025.
The NHS says making contraception available through local pharmacies is helping to remove barriers to care by providing faster and more convenient access closer to home.
Inderjit Sanghera, Chief Regional Pharmacist for NHS England South East, has said:
“It is fantastic to see so many pharmacies across the South East committed to improving access to contraception and giving women greater choice and flexibility in how they manage their health.
Article continues below this advertisement “Being able to pop into a local pharmacy rather than wait for a GP appointment is invaluable for women with busy lives.
“It also helps us tackle inequalities by ensuring everyone – including those in our most vulnerable communities – can access the contraception they want and need, close to home.”
The expansion of pharmacy services comes as part of a wider move to deliver more NHS care on the high street.
Earlier this year, the Government announced a £340million investment to further expand the role of community pharmacies.
From Autumn 2026, pharmacists with an Independent Prescribing qualification will be able to assess patients and prescribe medicines directly for a wider range of conditions, reducing the need for GP referrals.
The announcement follows continued growth in the Pharmacy First scheme, which delivered 3.4million consultations across England between April 2025 and March 2026 – a 40% increase on the previous year.
Women can access the contraception service through participating pharmacies, with all pharmacists and pharmacy technicians providing the service having received specialist training in contraceptive care.
