I am writing to confirm that I have now completed my search for the information which you requested.

Request

You asked us:

1) Annual totals of prescriptions dispensed for topical corticosteroid preparations (creams, ointments, gels, lotions), grouped by potency class – mild, moderate, potent, and very potent.

3) Any internal summaries or briefing notes (2015 – present) that mention or analyse any of the following: “topical steroid withdrawal”, “topical corticosteroid withdrawal”, “steroid dependence”, “steroid addiction (topical)”, or “rebound dermatitis”.

The NHS Business Services Authority (NHSBSA) received your request on 11 November 2025.

We have handled your request under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) 2000.

Our response

Question 1 - Annual totals of prescriptions dispensed for topical corticosteroid preparations (creams, ointments, gels, lotions), grouped by potency class – mild, moderate, potent, and very potent.

Under Section 21 of the FOIA we are not required to provide information in response to a request if it is already reasonably accessible to you.

The information you requested is available online through the English Prescribing Dataset (EPD) published by the NHSBSA.

The EPD dataset contains over 1 million rows and cannot be fully opened in spreadsheet programs like Excel. To access the data effectively, apply filters before downloading.

BNF 1304 is BNF Section Topical corticosteroids. Filter on all BNF chemical substance (codes) that begin 1304.

For further guidance, refer to the user guide on filtering large datasets: https://scribehow.com/viewer/Download_English_Prescribing_Dataset_EPD_Filtered_Records_Step-by-Step__MJZhcJhaRB20YA2hn7qy1Q

EPD without SNOMED code, monthly data January 2014 - June 2025: https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/english-prescribing-data-epd

EPD with SNOMED code, monthly data November 2020 – Present (September 2025 as of this response):

https://opendata.nhsbsa.net/dataset/english-prescribing-dataset-epd-with-snomed-code

Please see the following link to view the section 21 in full - https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2000/36/section/21

Question 2 - The BNF codes and product names used to assign each potency class (a lookup table or reference list if available).

Following a search of our paper and electronic records, I have established that the information you requested is not held by the NHSBSA.

Question 3 - Any internal summaries or briefing notes (2015 – present) that mention or analyse any of the following: “topical steroid withdrawal”, “topical corticosteroid withdrawal”, “steroid dependence”, “steroid addiction (topical)”, or “rebound dermatitis”.

Following a search of our paper and electronic records, I have established that the information you requested is not held by the NHSBSA.