Recommendation 16

We have been raising concerns about the lack of long-term planning for the NHS workforce since well before the COVID-19 pandemic52. We have noted that among comparable OECD countries the UK has relatively low numbers of nurses and doctors per 1,000 population.53 The Department has repeatedly failed to make good on its commitments to produce a plan to address this issue, and now many areas of the NHS workforce appear to be in crisis.54 This places significant constraints on ICSs’ ability to deliver their aims and objectives.55 These shortages appear to be particularly acute in some specialisms, such as midwifery, and we highlighted how this increases risks around unsafe care and patient safety.56 Workforce pressures in the NHS predate the COVID-19 pandemic, and have continued to worsen: NHS England told us there had been increased numbers of staff leaving the NHS “since the pandemic ended”.57 The NAO’s report highlights how the total NHS vacancy rate increased from 8.3% in December 2021 to 9.7% by June 2022, the latest date for which data is available, and NHS England told us that NHS vacancies were currently well in excess of 100,000 posts.58