Claire Anderson has today (13 July) been elected as president of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society, replacing Sandra Gidley. 

Ms Anderson, who was first elected to the board in 2012, was named English Pharmacy Chair in 2019 — also replacing Ms Gidley.  

This comes after Ms Gidley announced in April that she was stepping down and not standing for re-election for presidency this year in order to help bring 'new thinking' to the organisation.

Ms Anderson thanked Ms Gidley for ‘her leadership and passion for our profession, particularly for leading our response to the pandemic.’ 

During her presidency, Ms Anderson has pledged to expand the RPS membership to all health professionals and forge strong relationships with medical and nursing Royal Colleges and other organisations. 

‘I promise to always be equitable in my decision making, to stand alongside all our members and be an ally, to amplify the voice of pharmacy, to advocate for change and to support future generations of pharmacists,’ added the new president. 

Earlier this month, the RPS announced Thorrun Govind, Cheryl Way and Andrew Carruthers as the new chairs of the English, Welsh and Scottish Pharmacy Boards respectively. 

The three new chairs were elected to their positions in the RPS elections. Vice chairs and board representatives were also voted in.