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 extreme cost-cutting steps.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is focused on eliminating duplication across the organisations after their workforces swelled during the pandemic.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is also looking for to tighten his control over the NHS, deliver much better worth for taxpayers and free-up cash for the frontline.

Three more NHS England board members yesterday revealed they will quit at the end of this month, following the recent resignations of president Amanda Pritchard and nationwide medical director Professor Sir Stephen Powis.

The most recent 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 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-lasting strategy.

It was established by the Tories in 2013 to provide it greater political independence 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 best possible usage of taxpayers’ cash to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be significantly reduced and could see the size of the centre reduction by around half.’

The deeper staffing cuts follow a reduction of about 4,000 to 6,000 employees at NHS England over the past two 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, 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 chief delivery officer Steve Russell (left) and primary operating officer Emily Lawson (ideal) are amongst the newest managers to sign up with the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will end up being interim president at the start of April, will establish a shift group within NHS England to ‘lead the radical reduction and improving of the centre with the Department of Health and Social Care’.

He said: ‘We understand that today’s news is disturbing for our personnel, and we have considerable challenges and changes ahead.’We intend to have a shift team in location to start on the 1st April 2025 to help lead us through this duration.’

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

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

Mr Streeting stated: ‘I ‘d like to put on record my thanks to Julian, Emily and Steve for their commitment as public servants, and their operate in specific helping steer 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 ability and concentrate on delivering enhancement for clients and staff.

‘We are going into a 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 seriousness needed to satisfy the scale of the obstacle.’

As of June in 2015, NHS England utilized just under 15,000 full-time comparable personnel, including 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 also added his name to leaders resigning from their positions

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

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

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

‘Em ployees there have currently been through the mill with endless rounds of reorganisation. What was currently a stressful prospect has now become more like a headache.

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

‘Rushing through cuts brings a risk of creating an even more, more complex mess and might ultimately hold the NHS back. That would let down the very people who need it most, the patients.’

Matthew Taylor, president of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘These modifications are happening at a scale and rate not anticipated to begin with, however provided the huge cost savings that the NHS requires to make this year it makes good sense to lower locations of duplication at a nationwide level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has currently delivered significant cost savings and helped to provide improvements in performance, however national bodies and regional NHS leaders know 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 associated with this improvement as the instant next actions end up being clearer, so that an optimum operating model can be developed.

‘This should have to do with doing things in a different way for the benefit of regional communities as both patients and taxpayers, in addition to for personnel ahead of yearly study results on Thursday that are yet again expected to reveal the extreme obstacles they deal with.’

Wes Streeting