Wes Streeting Cuts NHS HQ Staff Numbers In Half

Plans to cut staff numbers in half at NHS England and the Department of Health and Social Care were unveiled yesterday amid drastic cost-cutting measures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is aimed at eliminating duplication across the organisations after their workforces swelled throughout the pandemic.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is also looking for to tighten his control over the NHS, provide much better value for taxpayers and free-up money for the frontline.

Three more NHS England board members yesterday revealed they will give up at the end of this month, following the recent resignations of chief executive Amanda Pritchard and national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis.

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

NHS England is the nationwide quango tasked with supervising the daily running of the health service and its long-lasting strategy.

It was developed by the Tories in 2013 to provide it greater political independence but Mr Streeting is eager to gain back tighter control from within his Department.

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

The deeper staffing cuts follow a decrease of about 4,000 to 6,000 employees at NHS England over the past 2 years and about 800 at the Department of Health and Social Care.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is also looking for to tighten his control over the NHS, in the middle of plans to cut personnel 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 chief running officer Emily Lawson (best) are amongst the most recent bosses to sign up with the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will become interim primary executive at the start of April, will establish a shift group within NHS England to ‘lead the extreme reduction and improving of the centre with the Department of Health and Social Care’.

He stated: ‘We understand that today’s news is disturbing for our personnel, and we have significant challenges and modifications ahead.’We intend to have a shift group in place to start on the first April 2025 to assist lead us through this duration.’

Ms Pritchard stated in a note to staff, seen by the Health Service Journal: ‘In the last number of weeks, I have said I think the time is ideal for radical reform of the size and functions of the centre to best assistance regional NHS systems and service providers to deliver for clients and drive the government’s reform concerns.’

She stated Mr Streeting had asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the inbound NHS England chair, to ‘lead this work, delivering considerable modifications in our relationship with DHSC to get rid of duplication’.

Mr Streeting stated: ‘I wish to put on record my thanks to Julian, Emily and Steve for their dedication as public servants, and their operate in specific 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’ve been impressed by their ability and concentrate on delivering enhancement for clients and personnel.

‘We are going into a duration of important change for our NHS. ‘With a stronger relationship in between the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England, we will work together with the speed and urgency required to satisfy the scale of the challenge.’

Since June in 2015, NHS England employed simply under 15,000 full-time comparable staff, consisting of permanent, momentary and consultancy. The 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 primary monetary officer Julian Kelly has actually likewise included his name to leaders resigning from their positions

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

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

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

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

‘Fixing a broken NHS requires a correct strategy, with central bodies resourced and managed successfully so regional services are supported.

‘Rushing through cuts brings a risk of producing an even more, more complex mess and could ultimately hold the NHS back. That would pull down the very people who require it most, the patients.’

Matthew Taylor, primary executive of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘These changes are taking place at a scale and speed not expected to begin with, but offered the substantial cost savings that the NHS requires to make this year it makes good sense to reduce areas of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has currently provided substantial cost savings and helped to provide improvements in efficiency, but nationwide bodies and regional NHS leaders know that more is required this year.

‘These modifications represent the biggest improving of the NHS’s national architecture in more than a decade. It is very important that local NHS organisations and other bodies are associated with this change as the immediate next actions become clearer, so that an optimum operating design can be created.

‘This must have to do with doing things differently for the benefit of regional communities as both clients and taxpayers, as well as for personnel ahead of annual study results on Thursday that are yet once again expected to reveal the severe obstacles they face.’

Wes Streeting