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 the other day in the middle of drastic cost-cutting procedures.

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

Health secretary Wes Streeting is likewise 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 announced they will give up at the end of this month, following the recent resignations of president Amanda Pritchard and national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis.

The current leaders to sign up with the exodus are Julian Kelly, the chief 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 national quango entrusted with supervising the day to day running of the health service and its long-term technique.

It was established by the Tories in 2013 to provide it higher political independence however 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 usage of taxpayers’ cash to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be drastically decreased and might see the size of the centre decline by around half.’

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

Health secretary Wes Streeting is likewise seeking to tighten his control over the NHS, amid 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 operating officer Emily Lawson (right) are among the most recent employers to join the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will end up being interim president at the start of April, will establish a shift team 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 substantial difficulties and changes ahead.’We intend to have a transition group in location to start on the 1st April 2025 to assist lead us through this period.’

Ms Pritchard said in a note to personnel, seen by the Health Service Journal: ‘In the last number of weeks, I have actually stated I believe the time is right for extreme reform of the size and functions of the centre to finest support regional NHS systems and suppliers to provide for clients and drive the government’s reform top priorities.’

She said Mr Streeting had asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the incoming NHS England chair, to ‘lead this work, providing considerable modifications in our relationship with DHSC to eradicate duplication’.

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

‘I have actually delighted in working with each of them over the last 8 months and I’ve been impressed by their skill and focus on delivering enhancement for patients and personnel.

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

As of June in 2015, NHS England used simply under 15,000 full-time comparable personnel, long-term, short-term and consultancy. The Department of Health and Social Care had around 9,000, including the UK Health Security Agency. These are both around 30 per cent more than in January 2020.

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

Professor Stephen Powis, the NHS national medical director, announced last week he would step down this summertime

UNISON head of health Helga Pile stated: ‘Staff will be not surprisingly worried about this abrupt change of direction.

‘The variety of redundancies being sought at NHS England has trebled in just a matter of weeks.

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

‘Fixing a broken NHS needs a proper plan, with main bodies resourced and managed effectively so local services are supported.

‘Rushing through cuts brings a risk of developing an even more, more complicated mess and could eventually hold the NHS back. That would pull down the very people who need it most, the clients.’

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘These modifications are taking place at a scale and speed not anticipated to start with, however given the big savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes good sense to minimize areas of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has actually already delivered significant cost savings and helped to provide improvements in performance, but nationwide bodies and local NHS leaders understand that more is needed this year.

‘These modifications represent the greatest improving of the NHS’s national architecture in more than a decade. It is essential that regional NHS organisations and other bodies are involved in this improvement as the instant next steps end up being clearer, so that an optimum operating model can be developed.

‘This must have to do with doing things differently for the benefit of regional neighborhoods as both clients and taxpayers, in addition to for staff ahead of annual study results on Thursday that are yet again anticipated to show the severe challenges they deal with.’

Wes Streeting