In June 2023 the NHS finally published its long-awaited Workforce Plan. This could be the start of a revolution in this critical area. With a reported £9 billion spent in 2021/22 on agency and bank staff (this represents 15% of the total wage costs across the NHS) it is about time this area was given far more prominence.
The Workforce Plan itself is welcome reading – it talks about key areas that the NHS needs to address; it paints a picture of hope in building and developing a workforce for the future and it commits to embracing partnerships to deliver real change across the NHS. But we have all seen strategies before that can gather dust. Often not because there is no belief in the principles of the goal, but how it is to be achieved can seem daunting, or if not daunting, then maybe just unattainable.
So the purpose of this discussion paper is to provide some insight, some hope and some direction. It won’t contain all the answers (hopefully some though), but I hope it will provoke thought and then that will prompt action. The only thing worse than doing anything is to do nothing, so this is our attempt to help the cause and to bring our insights, experience and thoughts into addressing the future needs of the NHS – starting today!
Jobtrain is an applicant tracking system provider. We’ve worked closely with NHS organisations to understand and deliver against their requirements – resulting in an intuitive, functionality-rich applicant tracking system that integrates effectively with a range of complimentary NHS technical partners.