Briefing / Summary of the Interim NHS people plan

The Interim NHS people plan gives an immediate focus for the workforce actions that need to be taken now, to begin the implementation of the NHS long-term plan. It will be followed by a fuller, five-year strategy after the government’s spending review, when it is known what funding will be available to support the education and training required. This will be published alongside a detailed implementation plan for the NHS long-term plan.

The interim plan sets out a belief that workforce issues and planning have lost their priority at board level over the last decade, with operational and financial plans taking precedence. It recognises that workplace culture has become challenging for many, with vacancies causing staff to be overstretched, compromising quality of care and adding to financial pressures with the use of temporary staff. In addition, employment expectations have changed with people choosing to take a more flexible approach to their career and work life balance. All of these things need to addressed.

This briefing summarises the key points across the five key areas of the interim plan – making the NHS the best place to work; improving the leadership culture; tackling the nursing challenge; delivering 21^st century care; and a new operating model for workforce.