Facebook

Wes Streeting Cuts NHS HQ Staff Numbers In Half

Plans to cut personnel numbers in half at NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care were unveiled yesterday in the middle of extreme cost-cutting procedures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is targeted at getting rid of duplication throughout the organisations after their workforces swelled during the pandemic.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is likewise seeking to tighten his control over the NHS, deliver better worth for taxpayers and free-up money for the frontline.

Three more NHS England board members the other day revealed they will stop at the end of this month, following the recent resignations of Pritchard and national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis.

The most recent leaders to sign up with the exodus are Julian Kelly, the chief monetary officer, Emily Lawson, the chief running officer, and Steve Russell, the chief delivery officer and nationwide director for vaccination and screening.

NHS England is the national quango tasked with supervising the day to day running of the health service and its long-term strategy.

It was developed by the Tories in 2013 to provide it higher political independence but Mr Streeting is keen to restore tighter control from within his Department.

NHS England said in a statement: ‘As part of the need to make finest possible usage of taxpayers’ cash to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be significantly reduced and might see the size of the centre decrease by around half.’

The much deeper staffing cuts follow a reduction of about 4,000 to 6,000 workers at NHS England over the previous two years and about 800 at the Department of Health and Social Care.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is also seeking to tighten his control over the NHS, amid strategies to cut staff numbers in half at NHS England and the Department of Health

Former NHS England chief Amanda Pritchard will step down from her position at the end of this month

NHS England chief shipment officer Steve Russell (left) and primary operating officer Emily Lawson (right) are amongst the most recent employers to join the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will end up being interim chief executive at the start of April, will set up a shift team within NHS England to ‘lead the radical reduction and reshaping of the centre with the Department of Health and Social Care’.

He stated: ‘We understand that today’s news is disturbing for our staff, and we have significant difficulties and changes ahead.’We aim to have a transition team in place to begin on the 1st April 2025 to assist lead us through this period.’

Ms Pritchard said in a note to staff, seen by the Health Service Journal: ‘In the last number of weeks, I have stated I believe the time is best for radical reform of the size and functions of the centre to best assistance local NHS systems and companies to provide for patients and drive the government’s reform priorities.’

She stated Mr Streeting had actually asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the inbound NHS England chair, to ‘lead this work, providing considerable changes in our relationship with DHSC to eliminate duplication’.

Mr Streeting said: ‘I ‘d like to put on record my thanks to Julian, Emily and Steve for their dedication as public servants, and their work in particular assisting guide the NHS through the pandemic.

‘I have actually taken pleasure in working with each of them over the last eight months and I have actually been impressed by their ability and focus on providing improvement for clients and staff.

‘We are entering a duration of critical transformation for our NHS. ‘With a more powerful relationship between the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England, we will collaborate with the speed and seriousness needed to satisfy the scale of the obstacle.’

As of June last year, NHS England utilized simply under 15,000 full-time equivalent staff, consisting of long-term, short-term and consultancy. The Department of Health and Social Care had around 9,000, consisting of the UK Health Security Agency. These are both around 30 percent more than in January 2020.

NHS England chief financial officer Julian Kelly has actually also added his name to leaders resigning from their positions

Professor Stephen Powis, the NHS national medical director, revealed recently he would step down this summer season

UNISON head of health Helga Pile said: ‘Staff will be naturally worried about this unexpected change of instructions.

‘The variety of redundancies being looked for at NHS England has actually trebled in simply a matter of weeks.

‘Em ployees there have actually already been through the mill with unlimited rounds of reorganisation. What was already a stressful possibility has actually now become more like a headache.

‘Fixing a broken NHS needs an appropriate strategy, with central bodies resourced and managed effectively so local services are supported.

‘Rushing through cuts brings a danger of creating an even more, more complex mess and might eventually hold the NHS back. That would pull down the very individuals who require it most, the patients.’

Matthew Taylor, primary executive of the NHS Confederation, stated: ‘These changes are taking place at a scale and pace not prepared for to start with, however provided the substantial cost savings that the NHS requires to make this year it makes sense to lower areas of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has already delivered substantial savings and helped to provide improvements in efficiency, but national bodies and regional NHS leaders know that more is required this year.

‘These changes represent the greatest reshaping of the NHS’s national architecture in more than a decade. It is important that local NHS organisations and other bodies are associated with this improvement as the instant next actions end up being clearer, so that a maximum operating model can be produced.

‘This should be about doing things differently for the benefit of regional neighborhoods as both clients and taxpayers, along with for personnel ahead of annual study results on Thursday that are yet once again expected to show the severe obstacles they face.’

Wes Streeting