A review of NHS prescription information has highlighted the extent of antidepressant dispensing across the capital, with an annualised total of 7,649,268 items supplied between March 2020 and March 2025 at an annual expenditure exceeding £21 million.
Mohammed A Rashad, who leads the Medicines Management Team, described the figures as notable in scope.
When converted to a yearly total, the data indicates antidepressants are being dispensed at approximately one item every third of a second throughout England.
He clarified that this does not indicate each prescription represents a new patient, nor does it suggest every item treats depression exclusively, but it demonstrates the significance of these medicines within routine NHS prescribing.
The figures were derived from the NHSBSA English Prescribing Dataset’s monthly dispensing records.
North East London reported the highest regional averages, with 1,839,756 items dispensed annually, while North West London followed at 1,791,996 items per year.
Nationwide, England saw nearly 96 million antidepressant items prescribed during 2025/26, representing a 3.1 per cent rise compared with the preceding year.
The estimated patient count also climbed by 2.2 per cent to 9.1 million individuals.
Rashad noted that interpretation of the data requires nuance.
Antidepressants are issued for various clinical purposes, and the NHSBSA dataset does not record the specific medical condition prompting each prescription.
He emphasised that the information should be understood as a measurement of prescribing volume rather than a direct tally of new depression diagnoses.
London’s monthly average of 637,439 antidepressant items fell below every other English region with the exception of the North East.
Over the five-year period examined, the capital’s mean monthly expenditure reached £1,786,723.56, translating to £21,440,682.72 each year.
Rashad observed that the consistent year-on-year growth reflects persistent rather than temporary demand for antidepressant prescribing.
He stated that this trend underscores the importance of ensuring patients undergo regular medication reviews, receive appropriate clinical monitoring, and obtain access to supplementary support services where clinically indicated.
National figures further revealed an association between social deprivation and antidepressant prescribing rates.
The NHSBSA documented that patients in the most deprived areas received 44 per cent more antidepressant prescriptions than those in the least deprived regions.
However, this correlation does not necessarily indicate a consistent pattern across individual London boroughs.
The dataset captures prescription items rather than distinct patients or confirmed depression diagnoses.
Antidepressants may also be prescribed for conditions beyond depression.
Additionally, items dispensed through hospitals, correctional facilities, or private prescriptions fall outside the scope of these figures.