Staffing is one of the big issues keeping NHS leaders awake at night – and it consumes two-thirds of trusts’ spending.
The HSJ has revealed a major u-turn in the planned operating model for procurement and the supply chain. NHS Supply Chain has announced that it will bring the management of all clinical procurement categories in-house by May 2023, with only non-clinical to remain outsourced.
8 February 2023
Controls on the use of agencies were re-introduced last summer by NHS England, where Systems were set targets to reduce spending by at least 10%, and up to 30%, compared to 2021-22 levels. All ICSs are currently on course to exceed their agency spending cap.
NHSE has also published its priorities and operational planning guidance for 2023/24, which sets out national objectives for Trusts and ICSs and includes reducing agency spending across the NHS to 3.7% of the total pay bills in 2023/24.
This is clearly a substantial challenge for ICS leaders, workforce managers, and Finance and HR teams, and needs thoughtful management to ensure that staffing levels are maintained without surpassing the capped budget via agency use.
A unique framework exists to support workforce transformation, with six key areas which can be combined to support ICSs to meet the challenge of reducing agency spending, whilst also improving efficiency across their workforce at the same time.
To find out more and discuss how this unique combination of transformation programmes can support meeting the agency spend reduction challenge set for your ICS, please contact us.
