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 revealed the other day amid drastic cost-cutting measures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is focused on eliminating duplication across the organisations after their workforces swelled throughout 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 yesterday revealed they will stop at the end of this month, following the current resignations of primary executive Amanda Pritchard and nationwide 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 shipment officer and national director for vaccination and screening.

NHS England is the nationwide quango tasked with supervising the day to day running of the health service and its long-lasting technique.

It was developed by the Tories in 2013 to give it greater political self-reliance however Mr Streeting is eager to regain tighter control from within his Department.

NHS England stated in a statement: ‘As part of the requirement to make best possible use of taxpayers’ cash to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be drastically lowered and could 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 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 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 delivery officer Steve Russell (left) and primary running officer Emily Lawson (right) are amongst the most recent managers to join the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will become interim chief executive at the start of April, will establish 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 know that today’s news is disturbing for our staff, and we have considerable difficulties and modifications ahead.’We aim to have a transition team in place to start on the first April 2025 to assist lead us through this duration.’

Ms Pritchard said in a note to personnel, seen by the Health Service Journal: ‘In the last couple of weeks, I have actually said I think the time is right for radical reform of the size and functions of the centre to finest support regional NHS systems and providers to provide for clients and drive the government’s reform concerns.’

She said Mr Streeting had actually asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the England chair, to ‘lead this work, delivering considerable changes in our relationship with DHSC to remove duplication’.

Mr Streeting stated: ‘I ‘d like to put on record my thanks to Julian, Emily and Steve for their devotion as public servants, and their operate in particular helping guide the NHS through the pandemic.

‘I have actually delighted in working with each of them over the last 8 months and I have actually been impressed by their skill and focus on providing improvement for clients and personnel.

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

As of June in 2015, NHS England used just under 15,000 full-time comparable staff, including long-term, 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 chief monetary officer Julian Kelly has actually likewise included his name to leaders resigning from their positions

Professor Stephen Powis, the NHS nationwide medical director, revealed recently he would step down this summertime

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

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

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

‘Fixing a broken NHS requires a proper plan, with central bodies resourced and handled efficiently so regional services are supported.

‘Rushing through cuts brings a threat of producing a further, more complicated mess and might eventually hold the NHS back. That would pull down the very people who need it most, the clients.’

Matthew Taylor, primary executive of the NHS Confederation, stated: ‘These changes are occurring at a scale and speed not anticipated to start with, but offered the substantial cost savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes good sense to decrease areas of duplication at a national level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has currently delivered significant savings and assisted to provide improvements in performance, however national bodies and regional NHS leaders know that more is needed this year.

‘These changes represent the biggest improving of the NHS’s national architecture in more than a decade. It is essential that local NHS organisations and other bodies are associated with this change as the immediate next steps become clearer, so that an optimum operating model can be produced.

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

Wes Streeting