South Central Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust (SCAS), which runs the region's NHS 111 service, reported on 15 August 2025 that calls to NHS 111 for urgent repeat prescriptions have risen sharply in the past year. New figures show a 61% increase, with the service now receiving around 16,000 calls a year for this issue alone1.
SCAS said bank holidays are the busiest periods, when demand for the NHS 111 service is already high, and that many of these calls could be avoided if patients checked their medication supply regularly and ordered repeat prescriptions in advance1. Patients are reminded to allow up to five working days from ordering their repeat prescription to collecting it, factoring in pharmacy and GP surgery opening hours during holiday periods1.
The trust highlighted alternatives to calling the helpline, especially on bank holidays when callers can find themselves in a long queue. The NHS App is available 24/7, all year round, to request repeat prescriptions and access other health services, and 111 online provides advice and services, such as ordering a repeat prescription, without waiting in a phone queue. Both services are free to use and, SCAS said, in most cases will be much faster than calling NHS 111, particularly at peak times1.
Jonathan Osmond, locality manager for integrated urgent care and NHS 111 services at SCAS, said repeat prescriptions can no longer be requested via a pharmacy and must now be done via the NHS App or the patient's own GP practice, so that all medication requests are clinically reviewed and safely managed. He said the NHS App only needs to be set up once and then allows repeat prescription requests including emergency supply, now and in the future, and that many GP surgeries offer an online service for repeat prescriptions too, which once approved can be sent to a home address or a nominated pharmacy for collection1.
"New figures show a 61% increase in calls to NHS 111 for urgent repeat prescriptions, with the service now receiving around 16,000 calls a year for this issue alone."
Why it matters for households
The figures cover the SCAS region, which runs its NHS 111 service; no comparable national figures for urgent repeat prescription calls are given in the announcement1. The practical effect falls on households who take regular medication and leave ordering until a bank holiday, when NHS 111 demand is already high and queues are longer1. SCAS advises patients to check their medication supply regularly, order in advance and allow up to five working days from ordering to collection, taking account of pharmacy and GP surgery opening hours over holidays1. It also states that repeat prescriptions can no longer be requested through a pharmacy and must go through the NHS App or the patient's GP practice, so that requests are clinically reviewed1. Households can read more on keeping enough prescription medicine at home, ordering repeat prescriptions online and what NHS 111 can help with, with other contact options listed under non-emergency numbers.
What happens next
No further dates or service changes are set out in the announcement beyond the reminder to order ahead of bank holidays1.
Keeping Prescription Medicine
Non-Emergency Numbers
NHS 111 How to Use It
