Nottingham pharmacy school marks 100 years with alumni event
Nottingham's pharmacy school has reached its centenary, marking the occasion with an event that brought together alumni, honorary staff, and senior figures from across the profession to look at where pharmacy goes next.
What happened
The University of Nottingham hosted a celebration to mark 100 years of its pharmacy school. The event drew alumni and honorary staff, along with leadership from two of pharmacy's most prominent organisations. FIP chief executive Catherine Duggan and CCA chief executive Malcolm Harrison both participated in discussions on the profession's future and Nottingham's role within it.
Why it matters
A centenary is a natural moment to take stock. Nottingham has produced pharmacists across all sectors for a century — hospital, community, academia, industry — and the guest list at this event reflects how far the school's reach extends. Having FIP's chief executive in the room signals that the conversation wasn't limited to UK concerns. FIP represents pharmacy globally, so Duggan's presence suggests the discussions touched on where the profession sits internationally, not just domestically.
Malcolm Harrison's involvement is equally telling. The CCA represents community pharmacy contractors, and community pharmacy is where most pre-registration trainees complete their foundation year. His attendance at a university centenary event points to the ongoing relationship between education and the sector that absorbs most newly registered pharmacists.
For anyone currently training, moments like this are worth paying attention to — not because a centennial party changes the day-to-day reality of a pre-reg year, but because the conversations happening at these events shape the profession's direction. Workforce planning, scope of practice, the integration of pharmacists into wider healthcare teams — these aren't abstract policy debates. They feed directly into what pharmacists are expected to do once registered.
Nottingham specifically has a track record that matters here. It has contributed to pharmacy education research and clinical training models that influence how training is structured nationally. A school that has been running for 100 years carries institutional weight when policy discussions happen, and its graduates occupy positions across the NHS, regulatory bodies, and the pharmaceutical industry.
GPhC exam relevance
The GPhC Common Registration Assessment tests knowledge across clinical and professional practice domains, but the broader context of the profession still matters. Understanding where pharmacy has come from — and where the major bodies are steering it — gives candidates a clearer sense of the professional standards they're being assessed against. The GPhC's own standards for pharmacy professionals didn't appear from nowhere; they reflect decades of evolving thinking about what pharmacists should be capable of and responsible for.
The presence of FIP at this event is a reminder that pharmacy's professional standards increasingly align across borders. Candidates preparing for the CRA should be aware that the GPhC frames many of its expectations within an internationally informed view of good pharmacy practice.
What's next
It's worth watching what comes out of the discussions at Nottingham's centenary event. If FIP and CCA leadership are shaping conversations about pharmacy's future direction, any resulting statements or position papers could signal changes to how community and clinical pharmacy training evolves over the coming years.
For candidates currently in their pre-reg year, the immediate takeaway is simpler: the sector you're entering has a long institutional history, and the organisations that shape it are actively engaged in defining what comes next. That context sits behind every professional standard you're being assessed on.
Source: Chemist+Druggist — https://www.chemistanddruggist.co.uk/news/education/nottingham-celebrates-100-years-of-pharmacy-school-JUKSOQY77NFPRKYPAMAOANRL2E/