The campaign to restore a campus pharmacy has taken a surprise twist for University of East Anglia students. After a year without easy access to medicine, hopes that an on-site pharmacy would return in September have been dashed. Boots closed its pharmacy at the UEA medical centre , close to Bluebell Road, in July last year leaving 17,000 students in the lurch.
The Boots pharmacy at the University Medical Centre closed last July (Image: Google) Nathan Wyatt, the welfare, community and diversity officer at the UEA Students' Union, launched the campaign and believed a breakthrough had been secured recently. "We couldn't believe it when we were granted permission by Primary Care Support England (PCSE) at the first attempt," said Nathan. "Usually applications have to be submitted and resubmitted a silly number of times, so it really highlighted the strength of our campaign and the need for a pharmacy in our area.
" Nathan Wyatt is the Welfare, Community and Diversity Officer at the UEA (Image: Nathan Wyatt) Clive Lewis, Labour MP for Norwich South, supported the UEA's application and called for the facility to be reinstated. Now, however, Nathan is at the end of his tether. "Allied Pharmacies, a national pharmaceutical company, is currently blocking the application," Nathan said.
Nathan put up posters around campus showing students where the nearest pharmacies are (Image: Nathan Wyatt) "They have appealed the application on the grounds that it might affect their pharmacy in Earlha.
