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 amidst drastic cost-cutting procedures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is targeted at removing duplication throughout the organisations after their labor forces swelled during 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 the other day announced they will stop at the end of this month, following the current resignations of president Amanda Pritchard and national medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis.

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

NHS England is the national quango tasked with managing the daily running of the health service and its long-term technique.

It was developed by the Tories in 2013 to give it higher political self-reliance but 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 finest possible use of taxpayers’ money to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be drastically reduced 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 also seeking 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 officer Steve Russell (left) and chief running officer Emily Lawson (ideal) are among the most recent employers to sign up with the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will become interim chief executive at the start of April, will set up a shift group 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 upsetting for our staff, and we have significant difficulties and changes ahead.’We intend to have a transition team in place to begin on the 1st April 2025 to assist lead us through this period.’

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

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

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

‘I’ve enjoyed dealing with each of them over the last eight months and I’ve been impressed by their skill and concentrate on providing improvement for patients and staff.

‘We are entering a period of important change for our NHS. ‘With a more powerful relationship between the Department for Health and Social Care and NHS England, we will work together with the speed and urgency needed to meet the scale of the difficulty.’

As of June last year, NHS England utilized just under 15,000 full-time comparable staff, consisting of 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 financial officer Julian Kelly has actually also added his name to leaders resigning from their positions

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

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

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

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

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

‘Rushing through cuts brings a danger of developing a further, more complicated mess and might ultimately hold the NHS back. That would pull down the very individuals who require it most, the patients.’

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, stated: ‘These changes are taking place at a scale and speed not prepared for to start with, however offered the big savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes good sense to lower areas of duplication at a national level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has actually currently delivered substantial savings and assisted to deliver enhancements in performance, but nationwide bodies and regional NHS leaders understand that more is needed this year.

‘These changes represent the biggest improving of the NHS’s nationwide architecture in more than a decade. It is very important that regional NHS organisations and other bodies are included in this change as the immediate next actions become clearer, so that a maximum operating model can be created.

‘This need to be about doing things in a different way for the benefit of local neighborhoods as both patients and taxpayers, along with for staff ahead of yearly survey results on Thursday that are yet once again anticipated to show the severe obstacles they face.’

Wes Streeting