One quarter of primary care networks (PCNs) have a dedicated physical estate to provide face-to-face care to their patients, according to a survey carried out by our sister title, Pulse PCN.

The results found that of the 227 PCN representatives who responded, 26% said they had a premises for face-to-face care. Most of these (20%) were premises that already existed and were bought or rented by the PCN, and the rest (6%) of which were purpose-built.

Another 6% said they were planning to either get purpose-built premises or buy existing ones.

Most PCNs however (60%) did not have premises for this and were not planning to.


One PCN respondent said they were working from 'inadequate premises' but the integrated care board (ICB) had 'no money to fund' a new one.

Another said: 'We have failed to receive any funding to find suitable accommodation for our clinical staff and staff are spread around the GP surgeries or working from home.'

Others said ARRS staff were 'squeezed in' or they were 'beyond capacity'.

The survey also found that only a third (33%) had premises for back office functions, with 54% saying they had no plans for this.

Only 21% of PCN representatives also reported that they had a premises for remote care.



Earlier this year estates were highlighted as a big issue in a study on whether the additional roles reimbursement scheme (ARRS) was able to fulfil its objectives, with some participants in the study saying this was a barrier to the success of PCNs.

The authors said: ‘The majority of those interviewed, from GPs through to clinical directors, commented on the lack of a suitable room for the ARRS staff, and the ARRS staff themselves told us this was a problem. This was so significant in some areas as to be seen as a potential obstacle to the success of PCNs.’

A third of practice pharmacists have no dedicated workspace

Pharmacists working in PCNs and general practices have previously said that a lack of suitable workspace hinders their ability to do clinical work.

In our most recent survey on the topic earlier this year, 29% of ARRS pharmacist respondents said they did not have a dedicated workspace for their PCN work.

This was an improvement on the result of a similar survey conducted in 2023, where 72.8% practice staff respondents said they did not have the space to house their ARRS staff.

A 2023 Pharmacists' Defence Association (PDA) survey also raised concerns about inappropriate workspaces, with practice pharmacists raising concerns that they were expected to conduct medication reviews on the telephone in open plan offices or other ‘inappropriate settings’.

The recent autumn Budget earmarked £100m for upgrading 200 GP practice buildings.

A version of this article first appeared on our sister site Pulse PCN.