Environmental Policy

Our Commitment to the Environment

At Wilsons Local Pharmacy we recognise our responsibility to minimise the environmental impact of our five pharmacies and to support a healthier, more sustainable community.

As a healthcare provider, our priority is always the health and wellbeing of our patients, customers, staff and local communities. We believe that protecting the environment is an important part of that responsibility.

We are committed to continually improving the environmental performance of our
pharmacies through practical, responsible and sustainable measures.

Our Environmental Commitments

Reducing Waste

We aim to reduce the amount of waste generated across our pharmacies by:

✔️ Reducing unnecessary use of paper and other disposable materials.
✔️ Increasing recycling wherever suitable facilities are available.
✔️ Reusing materials and supplies where it is safe and appropriate to do so.
✔️ Ensuring pharmaceutical and healthcare-related waste is handled and disposed of
safely and responsibly.
✔️ Encouraging staff and suppliers to consider waste reduction in their day-to-day
activities.

Responsible Use of Resources

We are committed to using energy, water and other resources responsibly. We will seek
opportunities to:

✔️ Reduce energy consumption across our pharmacy premises.
✔️ Use energy-efficient lighting and equipment where practical.
✔️ Avoid unnecessary heating, cooling and lighting.
✔️ Reduce water consumption.
✔️ Consider environmental performance when replacing equipment and making
improvements to our premises.

Sustainable Purchasing

Where practical and appropriate, we will consider environmental factors when purchasing products, equipment and services.

We will seek to work with suppliers who demonstrate responsible environmental practices and will consider factors such as packaging, recyclability, durability, product lifecycle and local sourcing where appropriate.

Packaging

We recognise the environmental impact associated with packaging. Where practical, we will seek to reduce unnecessary packaging and encourage the use of recyclable or responsibly sourced materials.

We will also encourage our customers to recycle packaging appropriately where suitable recycling facilities are available.

Medicines and Pharmaceutical Waste

The safe management of medicines is a key environmental responsibility for our pharmacies.

We will ensure that unwanted or expired medicines returned to our pharmacies are handled in accordance with applicable legislation, professional requirements and appropriate pharmaceutical waste procedures.

We will also encourage patients and customers not to dispose of unwanted medicines in household waste or wastewater and to return them to a pharmacy or use the appropriate local disposal service.

Sustainable Travel

Where practical, we will encourage more sustainable travel choices among our team,
including walking, cycling, public transport, car sharing and other lower-emission options.

For business travel and deliveries, we will consider opportunities to reduce unnecessary journeys and improve efficiency.

Supporting Our People

Environmental responsibility is a shared responsibility. We will provide our team with
appropriate information and encouragement to help them make environmentally responsible choices in their daily work.

We will promote practical measures such as reducing waste, conserving energy and
resources, and following appropriate recycling and disposal procedures.

Continuous Improvement

We recognise that environmental improvement is an ongoing process. We will regularly review our practices and identify opportunities to reduce our environmental impact while maintaining the high standards of patient care, safety and service expected from our pharmacies.

Where appropriate, we will establish measurable environmental objectives and review our progress over time.

Our Responsibility

This policy applies across all five pharmacies within Wilsons Local Pharmacy Management and staff share responsibility for supporting the principles outlined in this policy.

We will comply with all applicable environmental legislation, regulations and professional requirements relevant to our operations.

We will communicate this policy to our staff and make it available to our customers and other interested parties through our website.