Staffing and skills mix review
Vale of Leven Inquiry · The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report · Issued 24 November 2014 · Addressed to: NHS Health Boards (Scotland)
Source — verbatim from the inquiry
●Inquiry recommendation
Health Boards should ensure that the staffing and skills mix is appropriate for each ward, and that it is reviewed in response to increases in the level of activity/patient acuity.
Vale of Leven Inquiry, The Vale of Leven Hospital Inquiry Report · 24 Nov 2014 Source PDF →
Published evidence summary
Publicly available evidence relating to this recommendation:
- The Scottish Government's response detailed the development and mandatory use of nursing and midwifery workload and workforce planning tools across all NHS boards, addressing the need for appropriate staffing and skills mix.
- The Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 (provisions in force from 1 April 2024) places a statutory duty on NHS boards to ensure both appropriate numbers of staff and appropriate types of professions. Boards must use the 'common staffing method' and report quarterly to Scottish Ministers on staffing (Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 (https://www.legislation.gov.uk/asp/2019/6)).
- This Act directly implements the principle that staffing and skills mix must be appropriate for each ward and reviewed in response to changes in activity and acuity.
Response — verbatim from government
●Scottish Government
Section 4.1 of the Scottish Government's response details the development and mandatory use of ground-breaking nursing and midwifery workload and workforce planning tools across all NHS boards. These tools help determine the number of nurses or midwives needed by measuring actual workload in clinical areas, incorporating professional judgment and quality measures. This ensures appropriate staffing and skill mix, with action plans developed by boards to support their use and communicate outcomes.
Scottish Government · 18 Jun 2015 Written response →
Evidence trail — what's actually happened since
- 1 Apr 2024 · Scottish Parliament Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019 came into force 1 April 2024. Provides statutory basis for appropriate staffing including Common Staffing Method with mandatory staffing level tools for adult inpatient wards. Goes beyond what the inquiry recommended by putting safe staffing on a statutory footing. View source → Confirmed Completed
Each entry above links to a primary source — gov.uk written statement, consultation response document, or inspection report. The Index does not characterise government intent; it tracks what has been published.
How this page is built
Source and Response are verbatim from primary documents. The Evidence trail records published activity since — written statements, consultation outcomes, inspection findings, parliamentary references. The Index does not paraphrase or characterise intent; it tracks what has been published. Where the evidence is the absence of action (a missed deadline, a slipped timetable), that absence is documented from primary sources rather than inferred.
This recommendation's data is verified periodically against primary sources. The Index is monitored for staleness weekly.