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 in the middle of drastic cost-cutting procedures.

The ‘bonfire of bureaucrats’ is targeted at eliminating duplication across the organisations after their labor forces swelled throughout the pandemic.

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

Three more NHS England board members the other day announced 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 current 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 national quango charged with supervising the day to day running of the health service and its long-term method.

It was established by the Tories in 2013 to give it greater political independence however Mr Streeting is keen to restore tighter control from within his Department.

NHS England said 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 radically minimized and might see the size of the centre decline by around half.’

The much cuts follow a reduction of about 4,000 to 6,000 staff members at NHS England over the past 2 years and about 800 at the Department of Health and Social Care.

Health secretary Wes Streeting is likewise looking for to tighten his control over the NHS, in the middle of strategies 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 among the newest managers to sign up with the exodus

Sir Jim Mackey, who will become interim president at the start of April, will establish a transition team 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 difficulties and modifications ahead.’We intend to have a shift group in place to begin on the first April 2025 to help 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 actually said I believe the time is right for extreme reform of the size and functions of the centre to best assistance local NHS systems and companies to provide for patients and drive the government’s reform concerns.’

She stated Mr Streeting had asked Sir Jim and Penny Dash, the inbound 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 devotion as public servants, and their work in particular assisting guide the NHS through the pandemic.

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

‘We are getting in a period of critical transformation 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 fulfill the scale of the obstacle.’

Since June in 2015, NHS England employed just under 15,000 full-time equivalent personnel, consisting of long-term, short-lived 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 percent 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 nationwide medical director, announced last week he would step down this summer

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

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

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

‘Fixing a broken NHS requires an appropriate strategy, with main bodies resourced and handled successfully so local services are supported.

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

Matthew Taylor, president of the NHS Confederation, stated: ‘These modifications are happening at a scale and rate not anticipated to start with, but given the substantial cost savings that the NHS needs to make this year it makes sense to minimize areas of duplication at a national level and for the NHS to be led by a leaner centre.

‘NHS England has already delivered considerable cost savings and helped to provide improvements in efficiency, however nationwide bodies and local NHS leaders understand that more is required this year.

‘These modifications represent the most significant improving of the NHS’s nationwide architecture in more than a years. It is essential that local NHS organisations and other bodies are included in this change as the immediate next steps become clearer, so that a maximum operating model can be produced.

‘This need to 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 staff ahead of annual study results on Thursday that are yet again anticipated to show the severe obstacles they face.’

Wes Streeting