The NHS has been urged to speed up a decision on opening a new pharmacy in South West London after 'shocking' delays.

Nearly a year has passed since the Boots pharmacies on Tangley Park Road and Priory Road closed in Hampton, which left residents 'horrified'.

Richmond's health and wellbeing board has escalated concerns about the NHS' handling of an application submitted in November to open a new pharmacy at the Tangley Park Road unit to NHS Resolution, which manages complaints. The application was refused in June this year, according to a report by Richmond Council officers, nearly seven months after it was made.

The Tangley Park Road pharmacy shut on October 21, followed by the Priory Road pharmacy on November 11. The closures have left patients travelling longer distances or relying on others to pick up their prescription. The Boots Pharmacy on Station Approach in Hampton is a 19-minute walk from Tangley Park Road, while the Boots Pharmacy on Bear Road in Hanworth is a 15-minute walk away.

An application to open a new pharmacy on Tangley Park Road was submitted on November 16, but the report claimed the NHS failed to tell the board until January 23. The type of application was for 'unforeseen benefits' as it had to reflect the board's existing pharmaceutical needs assessment, which did not account for the closures as it was published beforehand.

The board published a statement on December 1 addressing the gap in pharmacy services in Hampton. The application was ultimately rejected by the pharmacy services regulations committee on June 7 as its type, for 'unforeseen benefits', did not reflect this statement.

29 Tangley Park Road, Hampton, which was previously a Boots pharmacy (credit: Charlotte Lillywhite/LDRS).

The applicant has lodged an appeal against the decision and submitted a new application to open a pharmacy at the unit.

The report outlined the board's concerns about the application process, including the NHS' two-month delay in notifying it about the plans, lack of guidance on the correct application type and it taking seven months for a decision to be made. The board raised concerns the NHS failed to see the 'bigger picture' and that there is a lack of 'oversight and accountability' in the system.

The report added: "In essence, this application to improve provision was denied due to a supplementary statement advising that increased provision was needed."

The board met to discuss the report on September 2. Lib Dem councillor Jim Millard said: "This is really shocking. It's really concerning lack of transparency and an instance of bureaucracy seeming to get in the way of really important place-making."

Lib Dem councillor Elizabeth Gant added: "Hampton Square used to have a GP surgery, a dentist and a pharmacy. Now all of these have gone, yet Hampton North is one of the oldest wards demographically in the borough, with higher levels of disability and the highest proportion of residents living in social housing, at around 23per cent. It's poorly served by public transport… there's no train station and the bus services are erratic."

She added: "The reaction in Hampton to the closures was one of horror and there's a rare unanimity of opinion that this service is very much needed."

The report said residents picked up around 11,300 prescriptions every month from the pharmacies before they shut.

Lib Dem councillor Piers Allen read out the board's response to the latest application, which urged the NHS to expedite it due to the 'unnecessary delays and mishandling of the previous application'. He added: "Our residents in this area have been without significant pharmaceutical provision for far too long and the timeline provided for the decision being made on December 27 is unacceptable."

The NHS has been contacted for comment.