Blood test · Summertown, Oxford
✓ Finger-prick sample · result while you wait · No fasting

HbA1c (blood sugar) test
in Oxford.

HbA1c shows your average blood sugar over the past two to three months in one quick finger-prick test. No fasting, no appointment with the GP first, and the result explained against the NHS ranges before you leave.
Book HbA1c test
All 13 blood tests
HbA1c test icon
Price per test
£39
Finger-prick · result while you wait · No fasting
OVER 18S · NO GP REFERRAL · SUMMERTOWN
  • One fingertip sample, no needle in the arm
  • Pharmacist explains the result before you leave
  • Printed or emailed result, and a GP letter if needed
Book now →
📞 Call Summertown
Screening test, not a diagnosis. Out-of-range results are confirmed by a laboratory test through your GP.
Same visit
Result while you wait
£39
All-inclusive, no clinic fee
No fasting
Preparation
18+
Adults only · book online
What the test measures

What HbA1c tells you.

HbA1c (glycated haemoglobin) is the proportion of your red blood cells that have sugar attached. Because red cells live for about three months, it gives a longer-term picture than a single glucose reading. It is the test the NHS uses to screen for and monitor type 2 diabetes.

It can…

  • Show whether your average blood sugar is in the normal, at-risk or diabetes range
  • Give people already diagnosed a check between GP reviews
  • Show whether changes to diet, activity or weight are making a difference

It can’t…

  • Diagnose diabetes on its own - a result of 48 or more is confirmed with a laboratory test through your GP
  • Give a reliable reading in pregnancy, with anaemia or some inherited haemoglobin types, or after recent heavy blood loss
Worth booking if

A good fit if…

  • You have a family history of type 2 diabetes, or were told you were "borderline"
  • You are overweight, over 40, or of South Asian, Black African or Caribbean background and want a check
  • You have been diagnosed and want a reading between your NHS reviews
  • You are changing your diet or losing weight and want to see the effect
See your GP first if

Not the right first step if…

  • Thirst, passing urine often, weight loss without trying or blurred vision - see your GP this week rather than waiting for a test
  • You are pregnant: this test is not used in pregnancy
A finger-prick test cannot assess an emergency. Call 999 for chest pain, breathlessness or collapse.
Your visit

What happens, start to finish.

About thirty minutes in total, most of it the pharmacist talking you through the result.

1. Book online

Pick your test and a time at Summertown.

2. A few questions

Medicines, symptoms and consent, in the consultation room.

3. One finger-prick

A few drops onto the test cartridge. Less than a flu jab.

4. A short wait

The analyser runs while you wait in the pharmacy.

5. Result explained

Against the UK ranges, with what it can and cannot tell you.

6. Your next step

Printed or emailed result, advice, and a GP letter if one is needed.

Understanding your result

What your result looks like, and what it means.

Your printed and emailed result shows your value on a traffic-light bar like this, with a plain-English line and your next step.
Below 42
42 to 47
48 or more
Normal
Higher risk
Diabetes range
Example: 39 mmol/mol sits in the green band – normal.
ResultWhat it usually meansWhat we do
Below 42 mmol/molNormal rangeNo action needed. Repeat in a few years, or sooner if your risk changes.
42 to 47 mmol/molHigher risk of developing diabetesThe NHS Diabetes Prevention Programme is free; your pharmacist will explain how to be referred and what helps most.
48 mmol/mol or moreIn the diabetes rangeYou leave with a GP letter so a laboratory test can confirm it and your care can start.
These bands are the usual UK guide; your printed result shows the exact reference range the analyser uses. Some healthy people fall just outside a range, and one reading is a snapshot. The pharmacist reads your result with your history, and anything that needs confirming goes to your GP with a letter.
HbA1c FAQ

Common questions, answered.

No. HbA1c reflects the last two to three months, so what you ate today makes no difference.

It measures the same thing. Ours runs on a point-of-care analyser in the pharmacy; a result of 48 or more is confirmed by the GP’s laboratory before diabetes is diagnosed.

Yes, as a check between your NHS reviews. It does not replace them, and it is not the right tool if you need day-to-day glucose readings.

Anyone pregnant or within two months of giving birth, people with anaemia or an inherited haemoglobin type, and anyone who has had heavy bleeding recently. Tell us and we will advise.

Below 42 mmol/mol is the normal range. 42 to 47 means a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes, and 48 or more is in the diabetes range, which a laboratory test through your GP confirms.

For people without diabetes the ranges are the same at any adult age. People already diagnosed agree an individual target with their GP or nurse, often 48 or 53 mmol/mol depending on their circumstances.

Often checked together

Add a test from the same finger-prick.

Up to four tests can run from one sample, each £39. See all 13 blood tests →

Cholesterol (full profile)

£39 · same visit
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hs-CRP test

£39 · same visit
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Cystatin C kidney test

£39 · same visit
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Where

MediPill Summertown

📍 227 Banbury Road, Oxford OX2 7HQ
📞 01865 558 348
Blood tests run Monday to Friday. Opening hours and directions →
Book at Summertown
Who runs it

Pharmacist-led

Led by pharmacist Uthmaan Abbasi (GPhC 2237035). Analysed on a professional point-of-care analyser in our consultation room – your sample never leaves the building.

Ready for your HbA1c test?

£39, result while you wait, explained by a pharmacist. Book online for Summertown.
Book HbA1c test →