Pharmacist Support, the pharmacy profession's independent charity, has recorded an incredible 88 per cent increase in the support it offers in just one year.

In 2015 the charity provided 3,500 acts of support to pharmacists and their families, former pharmacists, pre-registration trainees and MPharm students facing difficulties - an 88 per cent increase on 2014 figures.

Across the year the charity dealt with over 800 enquiries, granted over £185,000 of financial assistance to those experiencing hardship, provided specialist advice in debt, benefits and employment law to 222 individuals, delivered over 2000 wellbeing acts of support via workshops, e-therapy programmes and webinars, awarded £34,000 in student bursaries and made over 300 calls to support individuals via its Listening Friends helpline.

Awareness of the charity has also grown, with a 92 per cent increase in website visits and an 11 per cent rise in enquiries. 78 per cent of enquirers who completed the charity's new online feedback survey in 2015 said that they were 'very satisfied' with the the response they got.

“One of our strategic objectives is to raise awareness of the organisation and our work” commented Diane Leicester-Hallam, chief executive at Pharmacist Support. “We have dedicated a great deal of time over the past few years to getting out and about to meet people and raise the charity’s profile, delivering presentations at a variety of events and conferences across the country.

"We have also spent time improving our online presence and resources to enable people to access useful and appropriate support at a time that suits them.”

In 2015 Pharmacist Support also built on its fundraising activities and secured over £260,000 in income from legacies and donations. Towards the end of the year the charity also launched its 175 Heroes campaign to recruit individuals and organisations from across the profession to raise vital funds in its 175th anniversary year (2016).

The charity's 2015 Annual Review can be viewed here.