Realising you have a problem with alcohol is the first big step to getting help.

You may need help if:

• you often feel the need to have a drink
• you get into trouble because of your drinking
• other people warn you about how much you're drinking
• you think your drinking is causing you problems

Getting the right support can be crucial to maintaining control in the future. Only relying on family, friends or carers for this often is not enough.

Ask our Pharmacist about what longer term support is available in your area. Self-help or mutual aid groups (groups such as AA or SMART Recovery groups) are accessible in most areas.

An allergy is when your body reacts to a substance it has become sensitive to. For example, dust, food, pollen, medication etc. Allergens in food and other substances cause your body to have an immune reaction. Hay fever is one of the most common allergic conditions. In the UK alone, around 13 million people suffer from hay fever. Although it usually begins during childhood/teenage years, you can get it at any age.

The symptoms of hay fever occur when a person has had an allergic reaction to pollen. Some of the symptoms include sneezing, runny nose, itchy/watery eyes, wheezing, coughing etc. As much as we can try to avoid pollen, unfortunately, sometimes it is just not avoidable. Particularly in the summer when there is naturally more pollen around, and we tend to spend more time outside.

While there is currently no cure for hay fever, there is a way you can relieve the symptoms, at least to a certain extent. A range of antihistamines are available at our pharmacy to help you prevent an allergic reaction from happening. There are tablets, nasal sprays and even products to help soothe symptoms, for example, sprays for itchy eyes. We also offer Fexofenadine (Telfast) which is a prescription strength antihistamine for those that suffer greatly from hay fever. After a quick consult with our pharmacist, you can purchase this from our store to help soothe any symptoms.

Please come in store and speak to our pharmacists about your options to relive your symptoms.

This service is available during a medicine use review. This process can take 10-15 minutes so that the patient is given time to relax before a reading is taken to reduce risk of 'white coat' hypertension, and therefore obtain an accurate reading. Note all services take place in our dedicated private consulting room. 

Community Pharmacy Consultation Service (CPCS)

Prescription strength Otomize Ear Spray for ear infections without needing to see your GP

The emergency contraceptive pill (morning after pill) – there are two types, Levonelle or ellaOne. You can get both Levonelle and ellaOne free of charge from: 

• contraception clinics
• most sexual health or genitourinary medicine (GUM) clinics
• most NHS walk-in centres and minor injuries units 
• most GP surgeries
• some hospital accident and emergency (A&E) departments 

After consultation with a pharmacist you can buy emergency contraception from our pharmacy. Levonelle can be taken within 72 hours (three days) of having unprotected sex, but it's most effective if taken within 12 hours of having unprotected sex. Prices vary, but it's likely to cost around £25. You need to be 16 or over to buy Levonelle. Girls under 16 can get Levonelle, but only with a prescription from their doctor.

ellaOne can be taken within 120 hours (five days) of having unprotected sex, but it's most effective if taken as soon as possible after having unprotected sex. Prices vary, but it's likely to cost around £35. ellaOne can be sold to under 16s without a prescription.

Erection problems (impotence) are very common, particularly in men over 40. It's usually nothing to worry about, but you should see a GP if it keeps happening.

Most men occasionally fail to get or keep an erection.  Causes of erection problems can be stress, tiredness, anxiety or drinking too much alcohol, and it's nothing to worry about.

If it happens more often, it may be caused by physical or emotional problems.

Medicine such as sildenafil is often used by doctors to treat erectile dysfunction. It is also available from our pharmacy. You no longer need a prescription to get sildenafil.  You can have a private consultation with our pharmacist to make sure it's safe for you to take it.

This service is provided for all patients who require it and is offered free of charge. Patients can also phone in for their repeats or use our dedicated service for their repeat requests 

Prescription strength melatonin (Circadin ) to treat jet lag without a prescription

This is provided by specially trained staff under the supervision of the Pharmacist. It is a confidential one-to-one service and has the advantages of offering a re-feeding and maintenance programme to keep the weight off once it has been lost 

Offered to all regular patients Provides an important opportunity for patients to improve their understanding of the medicines and solve any problems they have associated with the use of her medicines. It will also support patients to make the most from the medicines prescribed and help to reduce waste for the NHS. Note all services take place in our dedicated private consulting room.

This is available for all patients over 16 years over the winter season. Two experienced Pharmacists provide this service. Note all services take place in our dedicated private consulting room. 

We offer this NHS supported service to help patients when prescribed new medicines. 

We recommend you consider getting a flub jab If you don't qualify for an NHS vaccination but are:

• susceptible to colds and chest infections
• are self employed and unable to afford time off work
• would like to protect yourself from flu during peak season

We charge £10 and the service is available on a walk in basis without an appointment but please call the pharmacy first.

If you take regular medication, and your Gp is satisfied that it can be batched, we can manage and dispense these prescriptions (for medicines and appliances) for you as agreed with your GP. The Pharmacist will also discuss the use of the medication and/or appliances with you at the point of dispensing and inform your GP about any clinical significant issues. 

Our Independent Prescriber Pharmacist has specialised both in COPD and asthma, and can offer tailored services for our patients. Note all services take place in our dedicated private consulting room. 

Sore throats are very common and usually nothing to worry about. They normally get better by themselves within a week.In our pharmacy we can do a test for a sore throat and consult for water infection and give antibiotics if appropriate-saving you an appointment with the GP.

How to treat a sore throat yourself

To help soothe a sore throat and shorten how long it lasts you can:

• gargle with warm salty water (children shouldn't try this)
• drink plenty of water – but avoid hot drinks
• eat cool or soft foods
• avoid smoking or smoky places
• suck ice cubes, ice lollies or hard sweets – but don't give young children anything small and hard to suck because of the risk of choking
• rest

To help relieve the pain and discomfort of a sore throat you can:

• use paracetamol or ibuprofen
• use medicated lozenges or anaesthetic sprays (although there is little evidence they help)

You can buy them from our pharmacy without a prescription.

Antibiotic tonsillitis treatment without a prescription or seeing your GP

We stock a popular range of vitamins and supplements aimed at nutrition, and women's and men's health.