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 procedures.

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

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

Three more NHS England board members the other day announced they will give up at the end of this month, following the recent resignations of president 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 running officer, and Steve Russell, the chief shipment officer and nationwide 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 strategy.

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

NHS England said in a declaration: ‘As part of the requirement to make best possible use of taxpayers’ money to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be drastically decreased and could see the size of the centre decline by around half.’

The deeper staffing cuts follow a decrease of about 4,000 to 6,000 staff members 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, amidst 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 delivery officer Steve Russell (left) and chief operating officer Emily Lawson (ideal) are amongst the latest managers to join the exodus

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

He said: ‘We understand that today’s news is upsetting for our staff, and we have significant obstacles and modifications ahead.’We aim to have a shift group in place to begin on the 1st April 2025 to help 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 think the time is best for extreme reform of the size and functions of the centre to finest support regional NHS systems and companies to provide for clients and drive the government’s reform top priorities.’

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

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

‘I have actually delighted in dealing with each of them over the last 8 months and I’ve been impressed by their skill and focus on delivering improvement for clients and staff.

‘We are entering a duration of vital 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 urgency needed to meet the scale of the challenge.’

As of June last year, NHS England employed just under 15,000 full-time equivalent personnel, consisting of permanent, momentary 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 per cent 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, announced last week he would step down this summer

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

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

‘Em ployees there have actually currently been through the mill with limitless rounds of reorganisation. What was already a demanding possibility has now ended up being more like a headache.

‘Fixing a damaged NHS needs an appropriate strategy, with main bodies resourced and handled effectively so local services are supported.

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

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘These changes are happening at a scale and speed not expected to begin with, however provided the huge savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes sense to lower locations of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has actually already delivered considerable cost savings and helped to deliver improvements in performance, but nationwide bodies and regional NHS leaders understand that more is required this year.

‘These modifications represent the greatest of the NHS’s nationwide architecture in more than a years. It is essential that regional NHS organisations and other bodies are associated with this improvement as the instant next steps become clearer, so that an optimal operating model can be created.

‘This should be about doing things in a different way for the benefit of local neighborhoods as both patients and taxpayers, as well as for personnel ahead of yearly study results on Thursday that are yet again anticipated to show the severe difficulties they deal with.’

Wes Streeting