Welcome to Hunter Gatherer Primary Care – specialist NMP recruitment across the UK.
We place Non-Medical Prescribers into GP practices and Primary Care Networks on both a locum and permanent basis. Whether you’re a practice that needs a prescribing clinician to support your clinical team or an NMP looking for your next primary care role, we offer fast, compliant and properly matched recruitment.
What is a Non-Medical Prescriber?
A Non-Medical Prescriber (NMP) is a registered healthcare professional – other than a doctor or dentist – who has completed an approved prescribing qualification and is annotated on their professional register as an independent or supplementary prescriber. NMPs can prescribe medicines for patients within their scope of practice and competence, often autonomously and without the need for a doctor to initiate or authorise the prescription.
In primary care, NMPs play an increasingly central role in managing patient demand, reducing GP workload and improving access to prescribing. They run dedicated clinics, manage long-term conditions and handle repeat prescribing – all while maintaining the clinical governance standards that GP practices and PCNs require.
Which Professions Can Be NMPs?
NMPs come from a range of registered healthcare professions. In primary care, the most common backgrounds are:
- Nurses (V300 Independent Prescribers) – the largest group of NMPs in primary care; registered with the NMC with prescribing annotation. Often working as practice nurses, ANPs or nurse practitioners with prescribing responsibility
- Pharmacists – GPhC-registered independent prescribers; from 2026 all newly qualified pharmacists in England graduate with prescribing as standard
- Paramedics – HCPC-registered paramedic independent prescribers, increasingly deployed in primary care and urgent care settings
- Physiotherapists – HCPC-registered, typically prescribing within MSK and musculoskeletal scope, including in FCP and GPwER roles
- Podiatrists – HCPC-registered prescribers, particularly relevant in diabetes and lower limb care pathways
- Optometrists – GOC-registered independent prescribers, relevant to practices with extended optometry services
All NMPs must be annotated on their professional register, prescribe under their own credentials and have a defined scope of practice agreed with their employer.
Why Practices Choose Hunter Gatherer for NMP Recruitment:
- We understand NMP governance Placing an NMP in a GP practice involves more than matching a CV. We understand the NHSBSA registration requirements, the need for NMPs to prescribe under their own credentials, and the compliance checks practices are required to carry out. We take care of the groundwork so you don’t have to.
- Verified prescribing annotations We confirm every NMP’s prescribing annotation on their professional register (NMC, GPhC, HCPC or GOC) before placement. We also verify their scope of practice, clinical references and mandatory training.
- Multi-profession NMP network We place nurse prescribers, pharmacist prescribers, paramedic prescribers and AHP prescribers. If you have a specific prescribing requirement – clinical area, formulary, patient group – tell us and we’ll find the right professional for your practice.
- Locum and permanent placements Urgent prescribing cover or a permanent NMP to grow your clinical team – we support both.
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What NMPs Do in Primary Care:
Non-Medical Prescribers in GP surgeries and PCNs typically work across:
- Independent prescribing consultations – acute presentations, medication initiation and titration
- Structured medication reviews and medicines optimisation
- Long-term condition management clinics – managing, reviewing and prescribing for chronic disease caseloads
- Repeat prescription authorisation and medicines safety checks
- Urgent same-day prescribing, including antimicrobials and acute medication
- Management of complex polypharmacy patients
- Prescribing support within extended access, enhanced services and MDT care pathways
- Supporting QOF delivery and enhanced service targets that involve prescribing
NMP Clinical Specialisms We Cover:
Our NMP network covers a wide range of clinical prescribing areas, including:
- Long-Term Conditions – diabetes, hypertension, COPD, asthma, cardiovascular, hypothyroidism
- Women’s Health – contraception (including LARC), HRT, menopause, cervical screening plus prescribing
- Mental Health – depression, anxiety, psychotropic medicines management, IAPT-linked prescribing
- Dermatology – chronic skin conditions, emollient prescribing, topical treatments
- Musculoskeletal – pain management, anti-inflammatory prescribing within MSK or FCP scope
- Respiratory – inhaler prescribing, COPD management, asthma reviews
- Anticoagulation – DOAC prescribing, warfarin monitoring and adjustment
- Urgent Care – acute and same-day prescribing, minor illness, antimicrobial stewardship
- Frailty & Elderly Care – polypharmacy optimisation, deprescribing, care home prescribing
Prescribing Qualifications Explained:
The two main types of NMP qualification used in primary care are:
- Independent Prescribing (IP / V300) The gold standard for primary care NMP roles. Independent prescribers can prescribe any medicine within their competence and scope of practice, including controlled drugs (within legislation). This is what the vast majority of GP practices and PCNs require.
- Supplementary Prescribing (SP / V300 component) Allows prescribing in partnership with a doctor or dentist via a Clinical Management Plan (CMP). Less commonly required as a standalone qualification in primary care, but relevant where a CMP-based model is in place.
- Community Practitioner Nurse Prescribing (V100/V150) A more limited formulary – used predominantly by health visitors and community nurses. Not typically sufficient for GP surgery NMP roles that require independent prescribing.
We confirm which qualification each candidate holds and match to the requirements of the specific role.
A Note on NMP Compliance in GP Practices:
NMPs prescribing in GP practices must be registered with the NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) and set up on the practice clinical system under their own professional credentials. This is a regulatory requirement – NMPs cannot prescribe under a spurious code or be set up informally. The practice must also notify the ICB NMP lead of all NMP joiners and leavers.
Hunter Gatherer Primary Care is aware of these requirements and supports both practices and NMP candidates through the setup process, making compliance as straightforward as possible.
Locum NMP Opportunities in Primary Care:
Locum NMP work in primary care offers genuine flexibility alongside competitive rates, particularly for independent prescribers. Whether you want to work regular sessions around another commitment or take on longer-term block bookings across multiple PCNs, we’ll match you to opportunities that suit your scope and availability.
We have active NMP requirements across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Bristol, Cardiff, Glasgow and beyond.
NMP Pay Rates & Salaries (2025/26):
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Locum NMPs:£35 – £65 per hour. Rates vary by experience, specialism, location and urgency. London, urgent cover and complex prescribing roles attract higher rates. Evening and weekend sessions also command a premium.
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Salaried NMPs:Salaried NMP roles in primary care typically sit at NHS AfC Band 7 or Band 8a, depending on level of autonomy and seniority. Band 7 runs from £47,810 to £54,710 (2025/26); Band 8a from £55,690 upwards. Many GP surgery NMP roles are not directly on AfC contracts but are benchmarked against these rates.
Nurse prescribers with independent prescribing qualifications command notably higher salaries than non-prescribing nurses – on average around £10,000 more per year in primary care settings.
Frequently Asked Questions:
- What prescribing qualification is needed for GP surgery NMP roles? The vast majority of GP surgery and PCN NMP roles require Independent Prescribing (V300 or equivalent annotation on the relevant professional register). Community practitioner nurse prescribing (V100/V150) is generally insufficient for roles requiring full clinical prescribing autonomy.
- Do NMPs need to be set up with the NHSBSA to prescribe in a GP practice? Yes. All NMPs prescribing in a GP practice must be registered with the NHS Business Services Authority under their own credentials. This is a regulatory requirement and cannot be worked around. We’re familiar with the setup process and support both practices and candidates through it.
- Can you place nurse prescribers at short notice? Yes. Once an NMP is registered and compliant with us, we can respond quickly to urgent requirements. Contact us directly for same-day or short-notice cover needs.
- Do you place NMPs from AHP backgrounds as well as nurses and pharmacists? Yes. We place independent prescribers from all eligible professions – nurses, pharmacists, paramedics, physiotherapists and podiatrists – depending on the practice’s clinical requirements.
- What areas do you cover? We place NMPs across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland – including London, Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, Bristol, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Cardiff and beyond.
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