The NHS Long Term Workforce Plan: What you need to know

On June 30^th, the NHS published their long-awaited NHS Long Term Workforce Plan – Ben Gowland lists the top ten things those working in general practice need to know

CREDIT: This is an edited version of an article that originally appeared on Practice Index

Here are the ten things you need to know about the NHS Long Term Workforce plan.

General practice features heavily

Unlike previous workforce plans, primary and community care are front and centre of this one. The document explicitly recognises that boosting these areas is key to the NHS thriving in the future.

Pay is not included

Despite the fact that junior doctors, nurses, ambulance staff and consultants are all striking, there’s no mention in the plan of pay or of any action that will be taken to address these strikes.

More GPs will be recruited

Without explicitly mentioning the previously promised 6,000 GPs, the document does recognise that there has been no net increase. It outlines plans to increase the number of GP speciality training places from 4,000 to 6,000 by 2031/32.

More speciality and associate specialist doctors are expected in general practice

The plan expects the traditional career path of core and speciality training to become less popular, with an increasing proportion of doctors likely to work part-time. The modelled increases are “particularly targeted towards general practice” (p41).

More additional roles are coming

While the plan does not mention that the ARRS will continue, it does say that the NHS will build on the success of the scheme and increase the number of additional roles staff by 15,000 by 2036/37. Over 5,000 additional primary care nurses are also promised.

Retention plans feel less concrete than recruitment plans

While the plans to expand recruitment are explicit and quantified, the plans to improve the retention of staff are less so. The plan proposes “systematic improvements to recruitment and promotion practices, leadership diversity, disciplinary processes, governance and accountability, and training and education. The NHS must embed a compassionate culture built on civility, respect and equal opportunity” (p60).

The plan encourages NHS terms and conditions for primary care staff

In a possible nod towards the potential nationalisation of general practice, the document wants ICSs to pursue “innovative employment models and adoption of NHS terms and conditions in primary care” (p62).

Workforce development across primary and community care could become joint

The NHS is very keen on bringing primary and community care together, and this plan explicitly seeks an integrated career framework to operate across primary and community care (p67).

This plan will be reviewed and updated every two years

The authors have recognised that circumstances change, and therefore, have committed to the plan being reviewed and updated every two years following its publication this year (2023).

There is no mention of practice managers

While the clinical staff in general practice are at the forefront of the report, sadly the same cannot be said for practice managers. In what is probably a reflection of the national undervaluing of the role, there’s no mention at all of the critical role practice managers play and no explicit workforce plan included for them going forward.