Here's the pharmacies open this weekend as the Vic's A&E department prepares for busy bank holiday

Dr John Calvert, a resort GP and advisor at Blackpool Clinical Commission Group (CCG), which organises and pays for residents’ care, said those who turn up with minor illnesses or injuries ‘could face a very long wait’.

He said: “Staff in the department will always prioritise the serious and life-threatening emergencies, so those with only minor injuries could face a very long wait.

“Many people could be better off visiting a pharmacist of looking after themselves at home, so we would ask everyone to help ease the pressure by using the most appropriate service.”

Health chiefs said people should only call 999 or go to A&E ‘if it a serious or life-threatening emergency’. Those who are unsure can call 111 for advice.

For less serious injuries, people can visit the Walk-In Centre in Whitegate Drive, or the Same Day Health Centre in Dock Street, Fleetwood. Both will be open from 8am-8pm.

To book at Fleetwood, call 0300 123 1144.

A range of pharmacies in Blackpool will also be open over the bank holiday. They are: Boots in Bank Hey Street; Lloyds in Talbot Road; Lloyds in Red Bank Road, Bispham; Tesco in Clifton Road, Marton, Morrisons in Squires Gate Lane, South Shore; and the pharmacy inside the Whitegate Health Centre in Whitegate Drive.

The pharmacies inside the Asda in Dock Street, Fleetwood; Boots in Clifton Street, Lytham; Boots in Victoria Road West, Cleveleys; and Lloyds in St Andrew’s Road North in St Annes, will also be open. People were also urged to stock up their medicine cupboards.