The number of managers and senior managers working in the NHS in England decreased last year alongside an overall expansion in the size of the workforce, says a report from The NHS Information Centre today.

Final figures show there were 1,431,557 staff (including bank) working for the NHS in England on 30 September 2010. This was an increase of 10,559 (0.7 per cent) since 30 September 2009 and an increase of 312,599 (27.9 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.5 per cent).

This year's workforce census shows an increase in almost all staff categories but a decrease in numbers for managers and senior managers and for bank nursing staff.

The publication covers hospital, community, general and personal medical services. The NHS IC is also today publishing provisional figures for December 2010 for key Hospital and Community Health Services (HCHS) staff groups. These provisional figures show that most trends in the year to September 2010 have continued.

As at 30 September 2010, it shows the NHS employed:

• 41,962 managers and senior managers, a decrease of 2,770 (6.2 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 16,706 (66.1 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 5.2 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further decrease of 1,143 (2.7 per cent) since September 2010.

It also employed:

• 721,717 professionally qualified clinical staff – an increase of 2,707 (0.4 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 167,664 (30.3 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.7 per cent).

This group included:

• 103,912 HCHS medical and dental staff, an increase of 2,041 (2.0 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 32,224 (45.0 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 3.8 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further increase of 418 (0.4 per cent) since September 2010.
  • Of which, 37,752 were consultants, an increase of 1,734 (4.8 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 13,351 (54.7 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 4.5 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further increase of 277 (0.7 per cent) since September 2010.
• 39,409 GPs, an increase of 198 (0.5 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 8,040 (25.6 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.3 per cent).
• 151,607 qualified scientific, technical and therapeutic staff, an increase of 3,301 (2.2 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 45,697 (43.1 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 3.7 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further increase of 1,345 (0.9 per cent) since September 2010.
• 352,104 qualified HCHS nurses (excluding GP practice nurses and bank), an increase of 1,405 (0.4 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 62,723 (21.7 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.0 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further increase of 1,272 (0.4 per cent) since September 2010.
• However when bank staff and GP practice nurses are included, there were 410,615 qualified nurses, a decrease of 3,678 (0.9 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 74,663 (22.2 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.0 per cent).

The census also shows that the NHS employed:

• 380,605 clinical support staff (including bank staff), an increase of 4,266 (1.1 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 73,380 (23.9 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 2.2 per cent).
• 233,342 staff within NHS infrastructure support, a decrease of 2,506 (1.1 per cent) since 2009 and an increase of 59,609 (34.3 per cent) since 2000 (an average annual increase of 3.0 per cent). Provisional figures for December 2010 show a further decrease of 2,134 (0.9 per cent) since September 2010. This group includes managers and senior managers.

Chief Executive of The NHS Information Centre Tim Straughan said: “The annual workforce census provides a useful insight into the makeup of the NHS workforce. Reductions in managers and infrastructure support staff are likely to reflect in part the need to make management cost reductions in accordance with the NHS Operating Framework.

“These results are of particular interest to commissioners and policy makers who can use the census and the more up to date provisional monthly information to understand an organisation's changing capacity. This can help them build a workforce with the correct skills and expertise to meet patient needs.”

Full copies of the report are available at www.ic.nhs.uk/pubs/nhsworkforce

Ends

Note to editors

1. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care (The NHS IC) is England's authoritative, central, independent source of health and social care information. It works with a wide range of health and social care providers nationwide to provide the facts and figures that help the NHS and social services run effectively. Its role is to collect data, analyse it and convert it into useful information which helps providers improve their services and supports academics, researcher, regulators and policymakers in their work. The NHS IC also produces a wide range of statistical publications each year across a number of areas including: primary care, health and lifestyles, screening, hospital care, population and geography, social care and workforce and pay statistics.

2. All workforce census numbers are for 30 September 2010. All workforce census changes are for 30 September 2009 to 30 September 2010 or 30 September 2000 to 2010 and refer to headcount unless stated otherwise. All provisional monthly workforce figures indicate a change from 30 September 2010 to 31 December 2010. Provisional monthly figures for 30 September 2010 to 31 December 2010 are not available for Primary Care Staff including GPs, or bank staff. The NHS IC has also issued a data quality statement with this publication pubs/nhsworkforce as required by the Code of Practice for Official Statistics.

3. This year the headcount figures for 2010 are based on a new methodology which is not fully comparable with previous years' figures. The new methodology aligns the headcount figures across the 3 publications, listed in note 5 below, so all headcount figures are now calculated in exactly the same way. The new methodology is also consistent with the headcount figures, already in use within the provisional monthly HCHS workforce publication which has been published in this format since July 2010. Comparisons with 2009 have been adjusted so that they are on a like for like basis so will not equate to differences from previously published figures. Comparisons with 2000 have not been able to be so adjusted. Increases since 2000 are therefore likely to be slightly understated, but the impact on these figures of the change of methodology will be small.

4. Headcount refers to the total number of staff in both part-time and full-time employment. The main difference for the annual census this year is that headcount figures are a more precise count of absolute staff numbers as the methodology has changed from counting all contracts and job roles in different Trusts to one of counting unique individuals, where this is possible (for example, a nurse working for more than one Trust). This results in duplicate individuals being removed at every level so when totalling, duplication is removed therefore the headcount total will typically be less than the sum of its component parts. There will remain, as in previous years, some potential duplication between bank and non-bank staff, and between HCHS and Practice Staff.

5. This annual publication presents the results from three censuses monitoring the NHS workforce as at 30 September 2010. The statistical publication takes the format of a summary document and three statistical bulletins: two covering Hospital and Community Services (Medical and Dental staff; and Non-medical staff); and one covering General and Personal Medical Services. These data do not include high street dentists and ophthalmic practitioners which are covered in other publications: statistics-and-data-collections/primary-care. Nor do they include social care which is covered in the publications at statistics-and-data-collections/social-care

6. HCHS medical and dental staff are all hospital and community doctors (excluding GPs) with a medical and dental specialty.

7. Bank staff work through NHS Professionals or the hospitals' own bank arrangements. Agency staff are excluded. The census collects the number of bank staff who have worked in the week prior to census day (30 September).

8. Staff in support to clinical staff includes the following sub groups; Support to doctors and nursing (including bank staff) - such as nursery nurses, healthcare assistants, clerical and administrative staff working specifically in clinical areas such as medical secretaries, and maintenance and works staff specifically identified as supporting clinical areas; Support to scientific, therapeutic and technical (ST&T) staff – such as ST&T trainees, healthcare assistants, clerical and administrative staff and maintenance and works staff specifically identified as supporting the ST&T group; Support to ambulance staff – such as trainee ambulance technicians, clerical and administrative staff and maintenance and works staff specifically identified as supporting the ambulance service.

9. NHS infrastructure support includes the following sub groups; managers and senior managers, central functions (such as personnel, finance, IT, legal services and library services), and hotel, property and estates (such as laundry, catering, caretakers and domestic services).

10. For media enquiries please call 0845 257 6990