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 revealed yesterday in the middle of extreme cost-cutting steps.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is intended at eliminating duplication across the organisations after their labor forces swelled during the pandemic.

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

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

The current leaders to join the exodus are Julian Kelly, the chief financial officer, Emily Lawson, the chief running officer, and Steve Russell, the chief shipment officer and national director for vaccination and screening.

NHS England is the nationwide quango entrusted with managing the everyday running of the health service and its long-term technique.

It was established by the Tories in 2013 to offer it higher political self-reliance but Mr Streeting is eager to gain back tighter control from within his Department.

NHS England said in a statement: ‘As part of the requirement to make finest possible use of taxpayers’ money to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be radically minimized and could see the size of the centre decrease by around half.’

The much 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 likewise looking for to tighten his control over the NHS, amid strategies 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 among the most current bosses 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 extreme reduction and reshaping of the centre with the Department of Health and Social Care’.

He stated: ‘We understand that today’s news is unsettling for our staff, and we have significant obstacles and modifications ahead.’We intend to have a shift team in place to begin on the first April 2025 to assist lead us through this period.’

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

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

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

‘I’ve enjoyed dealing with each of them over the last 8 months and I have actually been impressed by their ability and concentrate on providing enhancement for patients and personnel.

‘We are getting in a duration of critical change for our NHS. ‘With a stronger relationship between the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England, we will work together with the speed and seriousness needed to satisfy the scale of the difficulty.’

As of June in 2015, NHS England used simply under 15,000 full-time equivalent staff, including permanent, momentary 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 primary financial officer Julian Kelly has likewise included his name to leaders resigning from their positions

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

UNISON head of health Helga Pile said: ‘Staff will be understandably concerned about this sudden modification of direction.

‘The number of redundancies being sought at NHS England has actually 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 possibility has actually now become more like a headache.

‘Fixing a damaged NHS needs an appropriate plan, with central bodies resourced and handled efficiently so local services are supported.

‘Rushing through cuts brings a threat of producing an even more, more complex mess and might eventually hold the NHS back. That would let down the very people who require it most, the clients.’

Matthew Taylor, of the NHS Confederation, stated: ‘These modifications are occurring at a scale and rate not prepared for to start with, however offered the substantial savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes sense to minimize areas of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has already delivered significant cost savings and helped to deliver improvements in productivity, but national bodies and regional NHS leaders know that more is required this year.

‘These changes represent the greatest reshaping of the NHS’s nationwide architecture in more than a years. It is important that local NHS organisations and other bodies are involved in this transformation as the instant next actions become clearer, so that a maximum operating design can be developed.

‘This must have to do with doing things differently for the advantage of regional communities as both clients and taxpayers, in addition to for staff ahead of annual survey results on Thursday that are yet again expected to show the severe difficulties they face.’

Wes Streeting