Prescriptions need to be signed in indelible ink by an appropriate prescriber (EPS prescriptions are an exception to this as they have been electronically signed).

Prescriptions need to include the date on which they were signed. A prescription is valid for up to six months from the appropriate date, or 28 days for controlled drugs. Appropriate date is either the date the prescription was signed or a date indicated by the prescriber as the date before which the drug cannot be supplied

Type of practitioner, e.g., dentist or nurse prescriber. You may be required to check in the Drug Tariff to see if the item is allowed, particularly if the script is written by a non-medical prescriber. It is also important to check the address of the prescriber. 

These include the full name, age (if under 12 years old) and address of the patient. 

Photocopies or faxes of prescriptions are not legally valid.