How you’d get it

How you’d get this certificate

  1. Zavmo teaches you. You learn the units one-to-one with an AI tutor, on your own work.
  2. You register with an approved centre. That is a college, training provider or employer Open Awards has approved to offer this qualification. Zavmo is not an approved centre, so you register with them, not with us.
  3. The centre assesses, and Open Awards awards. A qualified assessor at the centre judges your evidence, and the certificate comes from Open Awards.

More on studying for a qualification

01What it is

Home Who We Are Choosing Open Awards Our Mission, Vision and Values Meet the Team Job Vacancies Cyber Essentials Plus Quality and Standards Advisor What We Offer What We Offer Adult Social Care Certificate Regulated Qualifications Apprenticeship Assessments Access to HE Functional Skills Essential Digital Skills Skills Passport Badge of Excellence Quality Endorsed Units Meeting Room and Assessment Space Hire Qualification Development NHS England Functional Skills Assessments Micro-credentials Remote Invigilation What's New? Training and Events Centres Become a provider Awarding of Results - Summer 2026 Administration Procedures Policies and Procedures Funding for Ofqual Qualifications Pricing Information FAQs Learners For Learners Replacement Documents FAQs Contact Us

These are the units Open Awards registers against this qualification. It is a catalogue, not a syllabus. Which of them you take depends on the combination the qualification requires, and that is set by the awarding body rather than by us. Every unit here is regulated. Zavmo teaches towards them on your own work, and work done here is recognised as prior learning under the agreements we hold.

Zavmo is not an awarding body, is not an approved centre, and is not affiliated with Open Awards. It does the teaching and the mapping. Open Awards sets this qualification and awards it, and a qualified human assessor makes the assessment decision.

Free first step

Try a free Future Fluency lesson first

The free part is a Future Fluency lesson on using AI at work. It is not part of this qualification. Next, a free account. We build your plan for this qualification as you set up. Teaching towards this qualification begins when you subscribe.

No card · Nothing to commit to

02The units

What each unit actually teaches you to do

Actions and Uses of Medicines Real unit · Open Awards
This unit examines the principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, explaining how medicines act within the body. You'll understand the therapeutic uses and limitations of medicines and develop skills to research pharmaceutical information using standard resources.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the principles of how medicines work in the human body, including pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics
  • Understand the uses and limitations of medicines in treating various conditions
  • Understand the use of standard pharmacy resources to research pharmaceutical queries, including drug formularies and online databases
Assemble and Check Dispensed Medicines and Products Real unit · Open Awards
You'll develop understanding of governance requirements and processes for assembling and checking dispensed medicines and products. The unit includes legal and ethical considerations, accuracy, quality assurance, and managing dispensing errors.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand governance requirements for assembling and checking dispensed medicines and products, including legal and ethical considerations.
  • Understand processes for assembling dispensed items, including accuracy checks and quality control measures.
  • Understand processes for packing and labelling prescribed items, ensuring compliance with relevant regulations.
  • Understand processes for preventing and dealing with dispensing errors and near misses, including reporting procedures.
  • Label and dispense prescribed items accurately and efficiently.
  • Check the accuracy of others dispensing of medicines and products against valid prescriptions, identifying and rectifying any errors.
  • Resolve dispensing errors and near misses effectively, taking appropriate action to minimise harm.
Biological Principles for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
You'll gain foundational knowledge of biological molecules including carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, enzymes, and the human genome. The unit explores their structures and functions to support understanding of biological principles relevant to pharmacy practice.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure and function of carbohydrates and lipids in biological systems
  • Understand the structure and function of proteins, including their role as enzymes and structural components
  • Understand the structure and function of enzymes and their role in biochemical reactions
  • Understand the structure and function of the human genome, including DNA, RNA and genes
Chemical Principles for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
You'll study chemical principles relevant to pharmacy, including the periodic table, chemical bonding, and common reactions in pharmaceutics. The unit also covers the role and properties of water in pharmaceutical products.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the fundamental principles behind the periodic table and chemical bonding
  • Understand the principles behind common chemical reactions relevant to pharmaceutics
  • Understand the importance of water and its properties in the formulation and stability of pharmaceutical products
Contribute to Service Improvement in the Delivery of Pharmacy Services Real unit · Open Awards
This unit provides learners with an understanding of audit and quality improvement principles in pharmacy services. You'll explore the audit cycle, quality methodologies, partnership working, and contribute to service improvements benefiting individuals.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the principles of audit in pharmacy services, including the audit cycle and its purpose.
  • Understand the principles of quality improvement in pharmacy services, including methodologies and tools for improvement.
  • Understand how partnership working contributes to improving the delivery of pharmacy services, recognising the roles of different stakeholders.
  • Deliver pharmacy services for the benefit of individuals, ensuring patient safety and well-being.
  • Respond to complaints effectively and professionally, following organisational procedures.
Medicinal Methods for the Prevention, Protection from and Treatment of Infections Real unit · Open Awards
This unit covers the function of blood and the use of medicines in infection prevention and treatment. You'll understand blood components, antimicrobial agents, immunological products, and health advice to support individual wellbeing.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the function of blood and its components.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of infections, including different types of antimicrobial agents.
  • Understand the uses of commonly available immunological products, such as vaccines and immunoglobulins.
  • Understand the advice individuals need to manage their health when taking medicines for infections, including potential side effects and interactions.
Medicinal Treatments for Cardio-respiratory Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit covers the anatomy and physiology of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems, the use of medicines in treating related conditions, and the advice needed for condition management. You'll understand physiological processes such as gas exchange and the cardiac cycle, and how pharmacological treatments support patient care.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the anatomy and physiology of the respiratory and cardiovascular systems.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of conditions of the respiratory system, including asthma, COPD, and pneumonia.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of conditions of the cardiovascular system, including hypertension, heart failure, and arrhythmias.
  • Understand the advice individuals need to manage their condition when taking medicines for cardio-respiratory conditions, including lifestyle modifications and potential side effects.
Medicinal Treatments for Endocrine, Gynaecological and Genitourinary Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit provides knowledge of the lymphatic, endocrine, and genitourinary systems, focusing on their structure and function. You'll understand how medicines are used to treat conditions affecting these systems and the advice required to support individuals managing such conditions.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure and function of the lymphatic system.
  • Understand the structure and function of the endocrine system.
  • Understand the structure and function of the genitourinary system.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of endocrine conditions, including diabetes and thyroid disorders.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of gynaecological conditions, including menopause and endometriosis.
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of genitourinary conditions, including urinary tract infections and prostate disorders.
  • Understand how medicines are used in obstetrics, including pregnancy and childbirth.
  • Understand the advice individuals need to manage their conditions when taking medicines for endocrine, gynaecological, and genitourinary conditions, including potential side effects and interactions.
Medicinal Treatments for Sensory Organ Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit covers the anatomy and physiology of sensory organs such as the eye, ear, oropharynx, nose, and skin. You'll understand how medicines are used to treat conditions affecting these organs and the advice necessary to support individuals.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure and function of sensory organs
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of eye conditions
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of ear conditions
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of oropharynx conditions
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of nose conditions
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of dermatological conditions
  • Understand the advice individuals need to manage their condition when using medicinal treatments for sensory organ conditions
Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Treatments for Central Nervous System Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit provides knowledge of the central nervous system’s structure and function, and how medicinal and non-medicinal treatments are used to manage CNS conditions. You'll explore treatments for mental ill health, pain, and neurological disorders.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure and function of the central nervous system
  • Understand how different medicines are used in the treatment of conditions affecting the central nervous system
  • Understand how medicines and non-medicinal treatments are used in the treatment of mental ill health conditions
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment and management of pain, including acute and chronic pain
Medicinal and Non-Medicinal Treatments for Gastrointestinal and Nutritional Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit covers the digestive system's anatomy and physiology, medicinal and non-medicinal treatments for gastrointestinal and nutritional conditions, and the advice needed for condition management. You'll understand digestion, absorption, and treatment options for common gastrointestinal disorders.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure and function of the digestive system
  • Understand how different medicines are used in the treatment of conditions affecting the gastrointestinal tract
  • Understand how medicines and supplements are used in the treatment of nutritional conditions and deficiencies
  • Understand the advice and support individuals need to effectively manage their gastrointestinal and nutritional conditions
Medicinal and Non-medicinal Treatments for Malignant Diseases and Musculoskeletal Conditions Real unit · Open Awards
You'll study human cells, tissues, and the musculoskeletal system, alongside medicinal and non-medicinal treatments for malignant diseases and musculoskeletal conditions. The unit includes advice for individuals managing these health issues.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the different types of human cells and tissue
  • Understand the structure and function of the musculoskeletal system
  • Understand how medicines and therapies are used in the treatment of malignant diseases
  • Understand how medicines are used in the treatment of musculoskeletal conditions
  • Understand the advice individuals need to manage their condition when using medicinal and non-medicinal treatments for malignant diseases and musculoskeletal conditions
Microbiology for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
You'll study the structure, function, and classification of microorganisms relevant to pharmacy practice. The unit includes factors influencing microbial growth, methods for monitoring and controlling microorganisms, and the mechanisms of infection transmission.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the structure, function and classification of microorganisms, including bacteria, viruses, fungi and parasites
  • Understand factors affecting microbial growth, including temperature, pH, nutrients and oxygen availability
  • Understand how the growth of microorganisms is monitored and controlled using various techniques
  • Understand the different routes of transmission of infection and methods to prevent its spread
Personal Development for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
You'll understand the legislative framework and professional standards governing pharmacy technicians. The unit develops skills in reflecting on personal practice, evaluating performance, recognising unprofessional behaviour, and planning for continuous professional development.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand how the role of the pharmacy technician is governed by relevant legislation, standards and codes of practice
  • Understand the principles of professionalism and ethical conduct within the role of a pharmacy technician
  • Understand how to reflect on own practice to identify areas for improvement and development
  • Evaluate own performance against established standards and objectives
  • Recognise behaviour in self and others that does not meet the required professional standard
  • Develop a personal development plan with clear goals and actions for professional growth
  • Contribute to the development of others through mentoring, coaching or training
Principles for the Management of Pharmaceutical Stock Real unit · Open Awards
You'll gain comprehensive knowledge of pharmaceutical stock management, including legal and ethical requirements, ordering and procurement processes, and proper receiving, storage, and maintenance practices to ensure safety and compliance.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand governance requirements relating to the management of pharmaceutical stock, including legal and ethical considerations.
  • Understand the considerations for ordering pharmaceutical stock, including demand forecasting and stock levels.
  • Understand how to complete the procurement process for pharmaceutical stock, following organisational procedures.
  • Understand how to receive pharmaceutical stock, ensuring accuracy and completeness of deliveries.
  • Understand how to store pharmaceutical stock, maintaining appropriate environmental conditions and security.
  • Understand how to carry out pharmaceutical stock management, including stock rotation and expiry date monitoring.
Principles of Health Promotion and Well-being in Pharmacy Services Real unit · Open Awards
This unit explores factors influencing health and well-being and the relationship between public health and pharmacy services. You'll understand behaviour change principles and the pharmacy technician’s role in promoting public health.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the various factors that influence health and well-being
  • Understand the relationship between public health and pharmacy services
  • Understand how principles of behaviour change can be applied to health promotion
  • Understand the role of the pharmacy technician in the promotion of public health
Principles of Health and Safety for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
This unit covers health and safety responsibilities within the pharmacy workplace, including legal requirements and risk management. You'll understand procedures for responding to accidents and emergencies to maintain a safe working environment.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the responsibilities relating to health and safety in the workplace, including legal requirements and organisational policies
  • Understand health and safety risk management, including hazard identification, risk assessment and control measures
  • Understand procedures for responding to accidents and emergencies in the pharmacy environment
Principles of Person-Centred Approaches for Pharmacy Technicians Real unit · Open Awards
You'll develop knowledge and skills in effective communication and person-centred care within pharmacy services. The unit emphasises the pharmacy technician’s role in safeguarding individuals and applying person-centred approaches to support patient autonomy and well-being.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand effective communication techniques within pharmacy services, including verbal and non-verbal communication
  • Understand person-centred approaches in pharmacy services, including respecting patient autonomy and preferences
  • Understand the role and responsibilities of the pharmacy technician in relation to safeguarding individuals, including vulnerable adults and children
Principles of Safe Manufacture of Quality Medicines in the Pharmaceutical Environment Real unit · Open Awards
You'll explore the governance and regulatory requirements for pharmaceutical manufacture, including Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP). This unit covers quality management systems, manufacturing processes, and pharmaceutical calculations essential for producing safe and effective medicines.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the governance requirements for the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, including regulatory frameworks and quality standards.
  • Understand the importance of maintaining environments for pharmaceutical manufacture in relation to Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP), including cleanliness, hygiene, and environmental control.
  • Understand how medicines are manufactured, including different manufacturing processes and equipment.
  • Understand how to perform calculations for pharmaceutical formulae, ensuring accurate measurements and proportions.
  • Understand the principles of pharmaceutical quality systems in the manufacture of pharmaceutical products, including quality assurance and quality control.
Receive, Validate and Issue Prescriptions Real unit · Open Awards
This unit focuses on the governance and standard operating procedures for receiving, validating, and issuing prescriptions. You'll develop practical skills to manage prescriptions accurately while adhering to legal and ethical requirements and providing appropriate patient information.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the governance requirements and standard operating procedures for receiving, validating and issuing prescriptions
  • Receive prescriptions accurately and efficiently, ensuring all necessary information is present
  • Validate prescriptions to ensure their legality, accuracy and appropriateness for the patient
  • Issue prescribed items to patients, providing clear and accurate information and advice
Undertake Medicines Reconciliation and Supply Real unit · Open Awards
You'll develop skills in medicines reconciliation, including taking and verifying medication histories and reconciling these with current prescriptions. The unit emphasises governance requirements and effective communication to ensure patient safety.

What you'll be able to do

  • Understand the governance requirements for retrieving and reconciling information about an individual’s medicines
  • Take a medication history from individuals
  • Verify the accuracy of the individual’s medication history
  • Reconcile the verified medication history with the list of medicines currently prescribed
  • Assess individuals’ own medicines or products for use
  • Order medicines and products for individuals to ensure sufficient supply
03The standards

The national standards these units are built against

What the job actually needs, in the words employers and awarding bodies already use for the work itself.

  • Analyse audits and inspections to ensure compliance to regulations in a Life Science Environment

    Standard
  • Assess the quality of radioactive medicinal products

    Standard
  • Certify Product for release under Marketing Authority License into the supply chain

    Standard
  • Contribute to the management of medication audit and review

    Standard
  • Determine methods for Pharmaceutical Manufacture

    Standard
  • Develop a training programme for staff to ensure compliance with the requirements of Good Distribution Practice Legacy

    Standard
  • Develop, implement and maintain a quality system to control the distribution of medicinal products

    Standard
  • Dispense Patient-Specific Anti-Cancer Therapy Doses

    Standard
  • Dispense medication after transplantation

    Standard
  • Ensure the Manufacturing Processes meet Licensing Requirements

    Standard
  • Help the patient to recognise and respond to symptoms of infections

    Standard
  • Implement a Quality Risk Management process to comply with the requirements of Good Distribution Practice for medicinal products

    Standard
  • Maintain License Requirements and Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) to Ensure Compliance

    Standard
  • Maintain Pharmacovigilance in the Life Science Environment

    Standard
  • Manage the prescription of controlled drugs for substance users

    Standard
  • Prepare Prescribed Radioactive and Non-Radioactive Medicinal Products from Raw Materials

    Standard
  • Prepare Prescriptions for Prescription-Only Medicines

    Standard
  • Prepare prescriptions for controlled drugs for substance users

    Standard

Showing 18 of 25 standards these units map to.

04Where it leads

The jobs these credits are mapped to

A qualification is never a dead end here. Each of these is a job record this qualification is a mapped route into.

Showing 6 roles, drawn from 31 job records mapped to this qualification. Near-identical records are folded together, and each row says how many it stands for.

Where this can lead

Associate Pharmaceutical Compliance Specialist

This role builds the fundamentals of compliance work. From here, it can lead to senior compliance specialist roles, or into compliance management.

See the whole journey
05The credits

The credits, and who awards them

Level 3 credits are regulated, and they are awarded by Open Awards rather than by Zavmo. They don’t vanish when a subscription ends or a website closes. They travel to any employer, and Zavmo keeps the map of what you have covered and what is next.

What you would be collecting

Actions and Uses of MedicinesAssemble and Check Dispensed Medicines and ProductsBiological Principles for Pharmacy TechniciansChemical Principles for Pharmacy TechniciansContribute to Service Improvement in the Delivery of Pharmacy ServicesMedicinal Methods for the Prevention, Protection from and Treatment of InfectionsMedicinal Treatments for Cardio-respiratory ConditionsMedicinal Treatments for Endocrine, Gynaecological and Genitourinary Conditions

Each one is a real unit registered against this qualification.

How you’d practise it

You don’t watch this. You do it.

You are not assessed on remembering this. You are assessed on applying it, analysing it, evaluating it and producing something. So that is what the practice is: projects, role play and your own live cases, with a tutor in the room.

The Analyst The Analyst · your map-it-properly tutor Illustration
The Analyst In “Principles of Safe Manufacture of Quality Medicines in the Pharmaceutical Environment” you have moved the target from 48 hours to 24. Where does that time come from?
You The team prioritises better, I suppose.
The Analyst Or it comes out of the follow-ups, and reopened cases climb in about six weeks. Let us map it and find out which, before it is a surprise.
The same lesson on the real thing: the conversation in the middle, the thinking ladder on the left, and the criteria each answer is evidencing on the right.
  • Map a live decision Analyse

    “Principles of Safe Manufacture of Quality Medicines in the Pharmaceutical Environment” runs on a decision you are facing now. Zavmo maps it with you and shows what the second-order effect looks like before you find out the slow way.

  • Lead it Apply

    “Principles for the Management of Pharmaceutical Stock” is practised on the team you actually have. You talk through the call you are about to make, and Zavmo makes you say it the way you would say it to them.

What you leave holding

The standards this credential builds, in the shape the product keeps them

Nothing here is marked learned. There is no learner on a public page, so the map shows what the qualification covers rather than what anybody has done.

See Your Progress Grow Illustration
Open Awards Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in the Principles and Practice for Pharmacy Technicians (Diploma)
  • Analyse audits and inspections to ensure compliance to regulations in a Life Science Environment
  • Assess the quality of radioactive medicinal products
  • Certify Product for release under Marketing Authority License into the supply chain
  • Contribute to the management of medication audit and review
  • Determine methods for Pharmaceutical Manufacture
  • Develop a training programme for staff to ensure compliance with the requirements of Good Distribution Practice Legacy
  • Develop, implement and maintain a quality system to control the distribution of medicinal products
  • Dispense Patient-Specific Anti-Cancer Therapy Doses
This is your Mind Palace on learn.zavmo.ai. Every skill above comes from this role's own record, not an example borrowed from another job. A node lights up when you evidence it, and what you build stays yours between jobs. That is the part a course cannot do.

How you would learn this

One to one, on the work you already do

A tutor sets the task against your own job and marks the reasoning, at your pace. There is no cohort to fall behind.

A lesson from Actions and Uses of Medicines, one of this qualification's own units.

Actions and Uses of Medicines Level 3

Applied to your work in any of these jobs

This unit examines the principles of pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics, explaining how medicines act within the body. Learners will understand the therapeutic uses and limitations of medicines and develop skills to research pharmaceutical information using standard resources.

How the thinking builds
  1. 1 Remember
  2. 2 Understand
  3. 3 Apply
  4. 4 Analyse
  5. 5 Evaluate
  6. 6 Create
An illustration of a Zavmo lesson, built from this role’s own route. The unit, its objective and every criterion above are the awarding body’s own words, not an example.

It is £70 a month, billed monthly. Your free first module is Future Fluency, and you can cancel any time. Teaching towards this qualification begins when you subscribe.

Your Plan Illustration

Built for Open Awards Level 3 Technical Occupational Entry in the Principles and Practice for Pharmacy Technicians (Diploma)

21 units in this credential, in the order it lists them, awarded by Open Awards.

  1. Actions and Uses of Medicines
  2. Assemble and Check Dispensed Medicines and Products
  3. Biological Principles for Pharmacy Technicians
  4. Chemical Principles for Pharmacy Technicians
  5. Contribute to Service Improvement in the Delivery of Pharmacy Services
  6. Medicinal Methods for the Prevention, Protection from and Treatment of Infections

and 15 more in the full unit list below.

These are the real units of this credential, in its own order. Nothing here is marked done, because this plan has not been started by anyone yet. Yours would fill in as you go.

Learned on your own work, taught one-to-one.

Everything you just read, learned one-to-one on the job you already do. Your free first module is Future Fluency, so you can see how the teaching works before you pay for anything.

Build my plan, free

No card. See how this qualification maps onto your role and meet the tutors who’d teach it, free. The learning begins when you subscribe. It’s £70 a month, billed monthly. Cancel any time and billing stops.

The title, level, credits, guided learning hours and unit learning outcomes on this page are taken from the Ofqual Register of Regulated Qualifications. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Where this data comes from.