SAINSBURY’S shoppers will lose a key service at 32 of it its supermarkets from this week.
Lloyds Pharmacy will close dozens more of its chemists this month – five of which will close to shoppers tomorrow.
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The move comes after Lloyds Pharmacy announced that it would close 237 of its pharmacies in Sainsbury’s supermarkets by the end of 2023.
At the time a Sainsbury’s spokesperson said: “Lloyds Pharmacy is withdrawing pharmacy services from our stores over the coming months.
“We will work with them to ensure customers are clear on how they can access an alternative pharmacy provision to meet their needs.”
Five Lloyds chemists will close in the following Sainsbury’s supermarkets on Wednesday, June 7:
- Chesterfield, Rother Way
- Derby, Peak Drive
- Manchester, Fallowfield
- Salford, Regent Road
- Wirral, Upton By Pass
Sainsbury’s in Machester on the Upton By Pass will then lose its Lloyds Pharmacy on Friday, June 9.
Lloyds chemists in 20 of the following Sainsbury’s supermarkets will then shut permanently on Tuesday, June 13:
- Aylesford, Quarry Wood Industrial Estate
- Brierley Hill, Amblecote Superstore
- Bristol, Emersons Green Superstore
- Cannock, Orbital Retail Centre
- Cramlington, Manor Walks Shopping Centre
- Darlington, Victoria Road
- East Grinstead, Brooklands Way
- Exeter, Alphington Road
- Exeter, Hill Barton Road
- Fareham, Broadcut
- Isle of Wight, Newport
- London, Walthamstow
- Loughborough, Greenclose Lane
- Morecambe, Christie Park, Lancaster Road
- Newton Abbot, Penn Inn
- Oldbury, Freeth Street
- Preston, Bamber Bridger
- Sheffield, Archer Road
- Sudbury, Cornard Road
- Tunbridge Wells, Linden Park Road
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Six more chemists will then close in the following Sainsbury’s supermarkets on June Thursday, June 22:
- Blackheath, Halesowen Street
- Edinburgh, Meadowbank
- Leicester, Glen Road
- Liverpool, Rice Lane
- Loanhead, Straiton
- Newcastle, Heaton
But Sainsbury’s shoppers aren’t the only ones losing out to their local pharmacies in-store.
Asda announced a proposal to close seven of its 254 in-store pharmacies in January.
Asda said it would look to close these pharmacies because of low customer usage.
The supermarket consulted on the move and confirmed the closures at the end of April but didn’t say when the pharmacies would shut for good.
However, Asda has told The Sun that all seven pharmacies will close on Thursday, August 3.
The closures will take place in Asda supermarkets in the following locations:
- Southampton
- Seaham
- Feltham
- Blackburn
- Adel
- West Bradford
- Weston-Super-Mar
Community pharmacies are essential for providing services to local neighbourhoods but hundreds have been shut in recent years.
Pharmacies across the UK have struggled for years due to cuts in government funding and the soaring cost of medicine.
Chemists are also being asked to pick up extra slack from the NHS by providing more services, such as vaccinations.
The pharmacy industry has lost £1.6billion in the last ten years as the health service’s pharmacy contract struggles to keep pace with inflation.
As a result, pharmacies are facing big cuts to their real-term funding, which is leading to the closures.
Pharmacy chain Boots also closed a string of its own stores in the spring – with more still to come.
Retailers in general have also been battling rising costs as inflation sends prices soaring and less demand among cash-strapped punters.
More companies in England and Wales went bankrupt in the first quarter of 2023 than at any point over the last three years, according to the Insolvency Service.
