The Business of Primary Care Networks
Over 250 blogs to support the leadership and management of primary care networks 

Support PCN pharmacist progression when ARRS roles are devolved: practical insights to unlock development across your network.

Four NHS England publications dropped between 1 April and 1 May 2026, covering strategic commissioning narratives, neighbourhood health centre planning, the Network Contract DES variation, and seasonal vaccinations 2026/27. Here is what each one says, with all the key dates in one place.

The Local Variation Arrangement is the route ICBs may use to align the DES with Single Neighbourhood Providers. Here is what it means for PCN leaders.

In a previous post, we shared the GP Contract letter for 2025/26. This post does the same for 2026/27, but goes a step further. As well as covering what has changed this year, we wanted to give those of you who are not GP partners or Practice Managers a clearer understanding of what practices are contractually required to deliver and the income streams available to them.

Primary care leaders are navigating neighbourhoods working with limited resources.

The removal of the Capacity and Access Payment from the PCN budget does not have to be an all-or-nothing story. The contract has taken the money away, but nothing stops a network and its practices deciding together what to do next. Here is what PCN leaders can still choose to do.

This is the seventh year of the PCN DES, and for most of us a lot of the specification will be business as usual. But Q1 is still an opportunity worth taking. A practical guide to the priorities PCN leaders need to focus on in the first 90 days of 2026/27, from year-end tidy-up through to IIF, ARRS and access.

If your PCN had to justify every ARRS role it currently funds, could it? Not in theory. With evidence of impact, embedded relationships, and a clear case for why that role, in your network, is worth protecting.