Key facts: Taunton
- Community pharmacies, Somerset, 2024/25
- 101
- Openings / closures, 2024/25
- 9 / 9
- Independent share (5 or fewer pharmacies)
- 27.7% (England 49.9%)
- Average items per pharmacy
- 86,421 (England 104,192)
- New Medicine Service consultations per pharmacy
- 382 (England 508)
- Commissioning ICB
- NHS Somerset ICB
2024/25 figures from NHS Business Services Authority pharmacy statistics for the ICB that covers Taunton; ranks are among the 37 ICBs outside London.
Taunton pharmacies: who owns them
Who owns the pharmacies matters to anyone buying one. In Somerset in 2024/25, 28 of 101 NHS community pharmacies (27.7%) belonged to independents with five or fewer branches and 73 to multiples. England's independent share is 49.9%; Somerset ranks 36th of 37.
With multiples holding more of the market than nationally, an independent pharmacy that comes up for sale here can draw competing buyers. Having finance lined up before you offer helps.
Openings and closures in 2024/25
Closure rate is a useful test of local pressure: in Somerset it was 8.9% in 2024/25 (9 pharmacies), against 6.4% for England, putting the ICB 6th of 37. 9 opened over the same period.
With no net loss of pharmacies, volumes are not being pushed onto survivors; the case rests on the pharmacy's own record.
Next door, Bristol (Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire) saw 8 openings and 10 closures among 166 pharmacies, Plymouth (Devon) saw 9 openings and 16 closures among 216 pharmacies and Swindon (Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire) saw 8 openings and 12 closures among 149 pharmacies.
How busy Taunton pharmacies are
Somerset pharmacies dispensed 8,728,538 items in 2024/25, 86,421 per pharmacy against 104,192 for England (35th busiest of 37 ICBs). 95.8% of items went through the Electronic Prescription Service. Lower average volumes mean each pharmacy's own figures, and its services, carry more weight with a lender than the area average.
On services, pharmacies here gave 39,285 NHS flu jabs (479 per participating pharmacy, England 437) and 38,561 New Medicine Service consultations, while 90.1% offered hypertension case-finding against 86.4% nationally. Lenders count services income alongside dispensing, so a good record here strengthens the case.
Buying a pharmacy in Taunton
Buying in Taunton? Expect the lender to ask for three years of dispensing and services figures, the lease, and how much you are putting in. Fund stock and the gap before NHS payments with working capital, and read buying a pharmacy first. The practice purchase loan calculator shows repayments against profit.
Premises, regulation and security
In England, a pharmacy freehold bought outright attracts Stamp Duty Land Tax on the non-residential scale, and the lender's security is a legal charge at HM Land Registry. Where the premises are leased, the remaining term and any break clause limit how long a loan can run.
Before completion a lender will want the change of ownership application to Somerset under way and the premises registration with the General Pharmaceutical Council in the buyer's name.
Lenders for Taunton pharmacies
Which lender suits a Taunton case depends on the pharmacy and the deal, not the postcode. We search the whole market each time. Fees depend on the lender, and nothing is due upfront.
Common questions
How many pharmacies are there around Taunton?
101 community pharmacies dispensed NHS prescriptions in NHS Somerset ICB during 2024/25 (NHS Business Services Authority). 9 opened and 9 closed in the year.
How many items does a Taunton pharmacy dispense?
The Somerset average for 2024/25 was 86,421 items per pharmacy; England's was 104,192.
How independent is the Somerset pharmacy market?
27.7% of pharmacies belonged to contractors with five or fewer pharmacies in 2024/25, against 49.9% across England.
