The Government has commissioned the first ever NHS Long Term Workforce Plan, which sets out a series of measures to train, retain and reform the NHS workforce and to put it on a sustainable footing into the future.
Backed by more than £2.4 billion investment, ahead of the health service's 75th anniversary, it sets out how the NHS will address existing vacancies and meet the challenges of a growing and aging population by recruiting and retaining hundreds of thousands more staff over the next 15 years.
The aims of the plan are to allow the NHS to:
- Train significantly more staff so we have the right number of doctors, nurses and midwives, GPs, dentists, allied health professionals - such as physiotherapists, pharmacy staff and other staff.
- Retain our dedicated NHS workforce by allowing greater flexibility and career progression and improving culture, leadership and wellbeing, while continuing to focus on equality and inclusion.
- Reform the way we work so healthcare staff have the right multidisciplinary skills and can harness new digital and technological innovations, allowing them to focus on patient care.
With new investment and funding from the Government over the next five years, this will help to fund additional education and training places. This is on top of existing increases to education and training investment, reaching a record £6.1 billion over the next two years. This represents a significant, long-term investment from the government to transform the future of the NHS.
This plan will expand domestic education and training places, increasing the number of GPs trained, providing 24,000 more nurse and midwife training places a year, expanding dental training places by 40%, and doubling the number of medical school training places with these focused in areas of the country with the greatest shortage.
Commenting, Leo Docherty MP said:
"Developed by the NHS and backed by the Government, this is a 15-year long term plan to meet the workforce requirements of the NHS and put the health service on a sustainable footing into the future.
"This is a comprehensive plan setting out how the Government will support and grow the workforce, expand training capacities, and ensure our NHS can continue caring for us here in the Aldershot constituency for generations to come."