The NPA revealed plans for a second day of protest earlier this month, after its emergency #SaveOurPharmacies protest last month saw around 6,000 pharmacies turn out their lights, black out their windows and wear black to raise awareness about the crisis in the sector.

It told C+D last week (July 18) that it is discussing different ways for pharmacies to join the September 19 protest without closing their doors to patients.

But it revealed that one of the options will be for pharmacies to sound an alarm - either as a test of their own alarm system or by ringing a bell - at a set coordinated time during the morning of action.

Read more: #SaveOurPharmacies: NPA announces second protest on September 19

Further plans will be announced once they have been agreed, the NPA added.

It said earlier this month that it would “consult widely across the sector on powerful symbolic action to take” and that it was “absolutely committed to ensuring that patients and staff are safe and are not put at any risk”.

The day of protest aims to highlight “the ongoing impact of financial pressures on community pharmacies”, with the date of September 19 chosen to “coincide with the runup to the Labour party conference in Liverpool”, the NPA added.

 

Petition surpasses 230k

 

It comes as the membership body also last week (July 19) announced that the #SaveOurPharmacies petition, launched as part of the cross-sector campaign online and in local pharmacies across the UK, has now reached more than 230,000 signatures “from concerned patients”.

It said that the petition has attracted 234,726 signatures so far “with thousands more coming in each day” - 140,000 more since the NPA held its “unprecedented” day of action on June 20.

The petition calls on the government to “provide immediate, fair and sustained funding to ensure the future of local community pharmacies”, it added.

Read more: ‘Save Our Pharmacies’ protest: as it happened

NPA chief executive Paul Rees said that the body is “so grateful” to all the pharmacies that have collected signatures for the petition, which “sends a powerful message to the new government that pharmacies are held in high esteem” by their local communities.

“I’m sure we all know how valued local pharmacies are by their patients but it is an incredible testament to community pharmacy that over 200,000 people have signed this petition so far,” he added.

Read more: ‘We were all dressed in black, the lights were off, and we had Channel Five’

Rees said that the NPA is “determined to do all [it] can” to highlight the sector’s “enormous financial challenges…and the need for a new deal that will halt the closures and allow the sector to reach its full potential”.

The NPA urged any pharmacies that have collected signatures but are yet to return them to the membership body to send them to [email protected] to “ensure they can be included in the total that will be submitted to the government”.

 

“Emergency protest”

 

First announced in early June, the initial “emergency” day of protest action on June 20 organised by the NPA sought to “signify dark times for the beleaguered community pharmacy sector”.

The NPA said earlier this month that the day of protest marked “the first UK-wide protest of its kind in community pharmacy and attracted support from across the independent sector”.

Read more: Communities across England share their “Save Our Pharmacies” experience online

Last month, the pharmacy union published an open letter to the NPA saying that employee and locum pharmacists “should not come under pressure to participate” in its June 20 protest and raising concerns around patient safety.

But it later said that it would launch its own separate but “supportive” campaign at a later date, after “discussions” with the NPA.