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 amid drastic cost-cutting procedures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is targeted at getting rid of duplication across the organisations after their workforces swelled during the pandemic.

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

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

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

NHS England is the nationwide 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 however Mr Streeting is keen to regain tighter control from within his Department.

NHS England said in a statement: ‘As part of the need to make best possible use of taxpayers’ cash to support frontline services, the size of NHS England will be significantly reduced and might 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 two 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, 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 primary operating officer Emily Lawson (right) are among the current 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 disturbing for our staff, and we have considerable difficulties and changes ahead.’We aim to have a shift team in place to begin on the 1st April 2025 to help lead us through this duration.’

Ms Pritchard said 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 support regional NHS systems and providers to deliver for patients and drive the federal government’s reform concerns.’

She said Mr Streeting had actually asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the inbound NHS England chair, to ‘lead this work, delivering significant modifications in our relationship with DHSC to remove 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 helping guide the NHS through the pandemic.

‘I have actually delighted in working with each of them over the last eight months and I’ve been by their skill and focus on providing improvement for patients and staff.

‘We are entering a period of vital improvement 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 employed just under 15,000 full-time comparable personnel, including irreversible, 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 likewise added his name to leaders resigning from their positions

Professor Stephen Powis, the NHS national medical director, announced recently he would step down this summer season

UNISON head of health Helga Pile said: ‘Staff will be not surprisingly concerned about this sudden modification of instructions.

‘The number of redundancies being sought 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 stressful possibility has now become more like a problem.

‘Fixing a damaged NHS requires a correct plan, with central bodies resourced and handled successfully so local services are supported.

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

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: ‘These modifications are occurring at a scale and pace not expected to start with, however provided the substantial savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes good sense to reduce areas of duplication at a national level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has currently provided significant savings and helped to deliver improvements in productivity, however national bodies and local NHS leaders understand that more is needed this year.

‘These modifications represent the biggest reshaping 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 immediate next steps end up being clearer, so that an optimal operating design can be produced.

‘This should be about doing things differently for the advantage of local communities as both patients and taxpayers, along with for personnel ahead of annual survey results on Thursday that are yet once again expected to reveal the severe obstacles they deal with.’

Wes Streeting