The Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS) supports additional workforce capacity in Primary Care Networks. For pharmacy services, the useful starting point is the work the population needs, the skills required and the arrangements for safe delivery.
What the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme funds
For 2026/27, eligible clinical pharmacist and pharmacy technician roles are defined in the Network Contract DES. Reimbursement is subject to the role requirements, additionality rules, actual eligible salary and employer costs, the applicable cap and the PCN’s available allocation.
Costs above the cap or outside scheme eligibility remain payable under the commissioning arrangements. The total price of a managed service is not automatically reimbursable.
Pharmacy roles eligible under ARRS in 2026
Clinical pharmacist
A registered pharmacist working within the primary care team, with the training, supervision and scope required by the DES. ARRS clinical pharmacists must be enrolled on, or have completed, the approved 18-month training pathway or an equivalent pathway recognised under the DES. Work may include medication reviews, monitoring, medicines optimisation and condition-specific care. Prescribing authority and competence must be checked separately from pay band.
Senior and advanced pharmacy roles
There is no separate ARRS senior clinical pharmacist role or automatic higher entitlement based on a job title or years of experience. Clinical pharmacists can contribute leadership and supervision within their role. A suitably qualified pharmacist may instead meet the distinct Advanced Practitioner requirements in Annex B15, including the relevant advanced-practice qualifications, approved pharmacist training and independent-prescriber status. Check the applicable role and reimbursement rules before agreeing a claim.
Pharmacy technician
GPhC-registered pharmacy technicians undertake clinical, technical and administrative work within their competence and appropriate supervision. They can support medicines reconciliation, patient medicines use, reviews and audit. They do not prescribe; work requiring a prescribing decision goes to an appropriately qualified prescriber.
Funding and reimbursement
The commissioner, normally the ICB, pays reimbursement to the PCN’s nominated payee. Claims must be supported by the required workforce and cost evidence. Where staff are employed by a third-party provider, eligible salary and employer National Insurance and pension costs must be appropriately apportioned to PCN activity and remain within the relevant limits.
Remote delivery can form part of a service arrangement, but it does not remove the DES role requirements. Confirm the service’s contribution to the PCN team, continuity, clinical work, training and supervision before commissioning.
Common challenges PCNs face
Supervision: identify the clinical and GP supervisory arrangements needed for the role and allow time for them.
Practice variation: agree protocols, access, record keeping and escalation across the member practices.
Recruitment: start dates vary by role, location and process. Plan around confirmed availability rather than an unsupported standard recruitment duration.
Reporting: record activity, outcomes, outstanding actions and eligible costs consistently. Avoid treating every review as a GP appointment saved.
How to structure delivery
Design a skill mix around the work. Pharmacists and technicians can complement each other without a universal one-to-one staffing ratio. Agree priorities, patient-facing work, follow-up, supervision, cover and reporting as part of the service plan.
When to use a managed-service provider
A managed provider can help with recruitment, clinical supervision, operational cover and delivery of the agreed workload. Before commissioning, establish which costs are eligible for reimbursement and how the service meets the DES requirements. The PCN must retain the evidence needed to support its claim.
Where to start
Our ARRS support service explains the delivery model. The ARRS calculator estimates the indicative allocation; it does not approve a claim. Contact us to discuss the workload, skill mix and commissioning arrangements.
Primary references
2026/27 Network Contract DES specification, sections 7 and 10 and Annex B; 2026/27 Part B guidance, including section 8.3 on remote clinical pharmacy services; GPhC guidance for pharmacist prescribers.
Frequently asked questions
Does ARRS cover the entire managed-service fee?
Not automatically. Reimbursement depends on eligible roles and salary/employer costs, the applicable cap, additionality and the PCN’s available allocation. Other costs may remain payable under the commissioning agreement.
Is a senior pharmacist a separate automatic ARRS entitlement?
A title alone does not determine entitlement. Check the relevant clinical pharmacist or advanced-practitioner role requirements, qualifications and reimbursement rules for the commissioned work.
Can pharmacy technicians prescribe?
No. They contribute clinical, technical and administrative medicines work within their competence and appropriate supervision. Prescribing decisions require an appropriately qualified prescriber.
Can a PCN commission remote clinical pharmacy services?
Yes, subject to the current DES and commissioning arrangements. The service must fulfil the applicable role requirements, including team working, continuity, clinical delivery, training and supervision; remote delivery is not an exemption from those requirements.
