Briefing / The NHS finance function in 2017: England

Since 2009 the HFMA has collaborated with SDN and its predecessor, the NHS Finance Skills Development Network (FSD), to produce biennial reports analysing the national finance function. The aim is to develop a better understanding of the make-up of the NHS finance function and how it has changed over time. The staff attitudes survey was carried out to help understand the qualifications, career path, morale and training and development needs of NHS finance staff.

The census data, collected in summer 2017, covers the number of finance staff in post at the end of June 2017. A small number of organisations did not supply information, and in these cases their 2015 figures have been used. This will not distort the overall figures used in this report but does enable comparisons to be made. The staff attitudes survey was collected in October 2017, with a response rate of 609 staff, which is similar to previous years.