What Is a Primary Care Network? PCNs Explained

• 23rd September 2026
• Clinically reviewed by: Adeem Azhar, MPharm, IPres

• How does a Primary Care Network fit within NHS primary care?
• Why were Primary Care Networks created, and do they still exist?
• How do Primary Care Networks work?
• What does a Primary Care Network do?
• Who works in a Primary Care Network?
• What does a Primary Care Network mean for patients?
• How are Primary Care Networks funded?
• How is a PCN different from a GP practice, federation or ICB?
• What are the benefits and challenges?
• How can clinical pharmacy strengthen PCN delivery?

A Primary Care Network, or PCN, is a group of GP practices working with local health and care services in NHS England. It is part of NHS primary care. Networks share people, primary care services, data and improvement work across a defined population. For 2026/27, the normal list-size criterion is 30,000–50,000 people, although commissioners can approve exceptions.

For leaders, the value is shared capacity.

For anyone asking what is a primary care network, it is a shared local framework. In practice, what is a primary care network? A way to share capacity.

Key takeaways

• A PCN is a local collaboration, not a GP surgery.
• Patients remain registered with their usual practice.
• Networks can share workforce, services and proactive-care capacity.
• A PCN is not normally a separate legal entity or an integrated care board.

How does a Primary Care Network fit within NHS primary care?

A Primary Care Network lets one or more GP practices work at a wider local scale. It can also support closer working with community, mental-health, social-care and voluntary-sector providers.

Patients remain registered with their own practice. It works through GP practices and is not a separate legal entity. It is also distinct from an integrated care board.

The 2026/27 specification requires a Network Area, Network Agreement, Nominated Payee and accountable Clinical Director. It also requires patient-record sharing arrangements. These structures create accountability without one legal model.

Why were Primary Care Networks created, and do they still exist?

Primary Care Networks were created to help practices provide capacity and services that may be difficult to sustain alone. They can support shared pathways, a broader workforce and more joined-up local care.

They still operate in England. The King’s Fund reports that PCNs are increasingly part of wider neighbourhood health arrangements. This does not mean they have been replaced. They remain the general-practice foundation within a wider integrated care partnership.

How do Primary Care Networks work?

A PCN works through an agreement between member practices, shared leadership and an agreed delivery plan.

1. Practices agree the Network Area. They define the local population and participating practices.
2. Members set responsibilities. A Network Agreement records how they will meet DES requirements.
3. A Clinical Director coordinates delivery. The director is a practising clinician from a Core Network Practice and is accountable for DES delivery.
4. The network deploys shared capacity. This may include appointments, data analysis, digital support and workforce roles.
5. It works with local partners. This includes community health services and other providers as part of integrated care.

The Nominated Payee receives DES payments. That does not automatically make the payee the network’s leader or establish a separate incorporated body. PCN management support should reflect the member practices’ own priorities and accountabilities.

What does a Primary Care Network do?

The 2026/27 DES gives PCNs four broad functions. They coordinate shared resources, use population health management to reduce inequalities, target proactive care to need and work with non-GP providers through integrated neighbourhood teams.

It supports primary care services across member practices.

NHS England’s clinical guidance covers cardiovascular risk, early cancer diagnosis and screening, proactive care, structured medication reviews, social prescribing and Enhanced Health in Care Homes.

A workable service model needs clear cohorts, agreed interventions and review. Population health management in PCNs can help turn local data into action. The requirements describe the intended model; they do not prove that every network has improved patient or system outcomes.

Who works in a Primary Care Network?

A network can organise a broader workforce than one practice may be able to sustain alone. ARRS supports eligible additional capacity under specific conditions.

Roles can include clinical pharmacy, social prescribing, therapy, nursing, paramedic practice, care coordination, digital transformation and mental-health support. A multidisciplinary team should combine the right skills around the relevant pathway. Not every PCN employs every role.

ARRS does not fund every staffing cost. Plans should also consider supervision, scope of practice, system access and governance. See the PCN DES 2026/27 implementation plan for current operational actions.

What does a Primary Care Network mean for patients?

Patients remain registered with their GP practice. They may see a shared clinician or attend another suitable local site for services arranged across the network.

It can also coordinate primary care services locally.

For 2026/27, Network Standard Hours for enhanced access are 6.30pm–8pm from Monday to Friday and 9am–5pm on Saturdays. The national capacity standard is 60 minutes per 1,000 adjusted patients each week.

Where a different time would better meet patient needs, a commissioner may agree that a proportion of this capacity is delivered outside Network Standard Hours. Exceptionally, a proportion may be agreed during core hours. This does not mean every GP surgery opens throughout all Network Standard Hours.

How are Primary Care Networks funded?

Network funding is a group of 2026/27 entitlement streams, not one universal annual budget. The framework includes Network Participation Payment, Core PCN Funding, Enhanced Access, ARRS reimbursement, Care Home Premium and the Investment and Impact Fund.

Each stream has its own eligibility and payment route.

How is a PCN different from a GP practice, federation or ICB?

What are the benefits and challenges?

A Primary Care Network can make shared delivery more practical, but the value depends on relationships and management capacity. Potential benefits include resilient services, specialist roles and clearer local pathways.

Challenges include different systems and cultures, fair allocation of shared staff, supervision, data sharing and limited management capacity. The early NIHR evaluation found that leadership mattered but did not establish causal patient or system outcomes.

Expert comment from our CEO and qualified clinical pharmacist:

PCNs work best when shared clinical capacity is matched with clear governance, practical pathways and local accountability.

Adeem Azhar, CEO, MPharm, IPres, Core Prescribing Solutions

How can clinical pharmacy strengthen PCN delivery?

Clinical pharmacy can help a PCN provide safe medicines-optimisation work across several practices. NHS England’s 2026/27 guidance includes medicines-optimisation measures and structured medication reviews for high-risk cohorts.

Clinical pharmacists and pharmacy technicians can support review pathways, medicines reconciliation, repeat-prescribing processes and prescribing-safety work. Their roles must match competence and local governance.

Frequently asked questions

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