NEL TRAINING HUB WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT AND TRAINING NEEDS SURVEY 2025
We invite you to take part in the NEL Training Hub – Workforce Development and Training Needs Survey 2025:
👉 https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/NELTHWDTN25
This is your opportunity to share your experiences, training needs, and the challenges you face in your role. Your insights are really important for us and will help shape our workforce development & training priorities and funding allocations for the year ahead. We highly encourage you to take part and share this with your colleagues.
The survey is open to professionals working in Primary Care, Social Care, and the Voluntary, Community, Faith & Social Enterprise (VCFSE) sectors across North East London.
It takes around 20 minutes to complete and will remain open until 14th March 2025.
Your voice matters – and we appreciate your time!
Bonus: This is an anonymous survey, but you can choose to enter a prize draw for a chance to win one of three £50 Amazon vouchers. Thank you for being part of this important survey!
UCL MSc Health Psychology – Request for clinical visits
UCL MSc Health Psychology programme team is looking for health professionals who can offer clinic visits to their master students.
As part of module Health Care & Intervention Delivery (IEHC0023), students on the MSc Health Psychology are required to attend half-day clinical visits to observe doctor-patient communication. The key learning would be that students can observe communication skills so the consultation would need to have relatively well-rounded objectives not just giving information, so clear emphasis on eliciting information from the patient, open ended questioning, ideally giving advice relating to health-related behaviour.
The learning objectives for clinical visits are as follows:
• Students will have an opportunity to observe consultations between healthcare professionals and patients.
• Students should be encouraged to consider relevant practical and ethical issues such as confidentiality, data protection etc.
• Students should have an opportunity to consider the healthcare professionals’ perspectives of a typical consultation with patients in their clinics.
• Students may also wish to consider reflections on the practical experiences of healthcare professionals in general e.g., dealing with difficult clients, those less willing to engage, time constraints etc.
If you are interested to provide any face-to-face clinical visits for our students between Feb and March 2025, please contact Sandra Soria Medina at s.medina@ucl.ac.uk
General Practice Nurse Fellow – Cancer Community of Practice (CoP) Leadership
Position: General Practice Nurse Fellow
Location: London (One session per week, remote working.
Term: 12 months]
Reports to: Steering Group Co-Chair / CLCH academy lead TBC
Closing date: 14.02.25
Role Overview:
The General Practice Nurse Fellow will play a key role in supporting the London-wide Cancer Community of Practice (CoP), working closely with the steering group to enhance integrated cancer care, education and supporting best practice across primary care, community and secondary care services. The Fellow will contribute to the development, coordination, and delivery of CoP activities, ensuring that events and initiatives align with the needs of primary care professionals and the wider healthcare community. This is a unique opportunity for an experienced nurse to help shape and support this innovative community of practice across London.
The fellow will be supported by the CLCH academy, and the CoP steering group. The role will be pan-London.
Key Responsibilities:
- Co-Chair Steering Group Meetings:
- Act as co-chair for the CoP steering group meetings, facilitating discussions and supporting the smooth operation of meetings.
- Ensure key decisions are made, and that actions are recorded and followed up effectively.
- Meeting Notes and Action Logs:
- Produce meeting notes and action logs after each steering group meeting, ensuring clear documentation of decisions, responsibilities, and timelines.
- Distribute meeting outcomes to steering group members and other stakeholders in a timely manner.
- Coordinate CoP Activities:
- Organize and coordinate CoP activities, including webinars, face-to-face meetings, and other educational events.
- Liaise with relevant stakeholders to ensure events are promoted effectively and run smoothly.
- Engage with Steering Group Members:
- Work closely with steering group members to identify and agree on relevant topics for CoP events, ensuring they reflect the latest trends, needs, and challenges in cancer care.
- Research and propose potential speakers for events, ensuring a diverse and knowledgeable range of experts is involved.
- Event Planning and Logistics:
- Coordinate the logistics for CoP events, including room bookings, managing online platforms (for virtual events), and handling any administrative requirements.
- Work with event speakers and partners to ensure all aspects of the event are covered, from content to technical needs, with support from colleagues at the CLCH academy
- Collaboration and Networking:
- Build and maintain strong relationships with CoP members, stakeholders, and external organisations, fostering collaboration and knowledge exchange.
- Support efforts to engage new members and encourage active participation in CoP events and activities.
- Monitoring and Reporting:
- Support the monitoring and evaluation of CoP activities, gathering feedback from participants and stakeholders to inform future events and initiatives.
- Provide regular updates to the steering group on progress, achievements, and challenges.
Person Specification:
- Essential:
- Registered General Nurse with an interest in cancer care and communities of practice.
- Ability to lead or facilitate meetings, with great communication and organisational skills.
- Experience in event coordination and working with diverse healthcare professionals.
- Ability to work autonomously and as part of a team.
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to engage and influence a variety of stakeholders.
- Desirable:
- Previous involvement in cancer care education, communities of practice, or similar collaborative initiatives.
- Knowledge of the London cancer healthcare landscape and primary care services.
This role is ideal for an experienced nurse who is passionate about improving cancer care and has the initiative to drive educational and professional development within the healthcare community.
Please submit your interest to: sandra.dyer1@nhs.net
London NHSE Apprenticeship Update 23/01/25
– Register your interest via the online form.
– Offers revealed: February 6th – watch your inbox for an email with all the exciting details!
Don’t miss out! This is your chance to be recognised for your achievements and enjoy some incredible perks during National Apprenticeship Week 2025.
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allowing up to 20% of the placement to take place remotely (up to 50% for T Levels in the Digital route)
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allowing the placement to take place at route level as well as pathway level
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allowing small team projects and simulated activities in skills hub and training centres to take place on the provider site (as well as externally), where this activity is delivered and overseen by the industry placement employer.
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Unpack the key updates to the delivery approaches and their implications for your organisation, students and employers.
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Provide practical guidance on how to embed various delivery approaches effectively into your current systems.
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Offer expert advice on overcoming common challenges in placement delivery.
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Have time to answer your questions with DfE
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T Level Leads
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Senior Leadership Teams
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Curriculum Managers
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Employer Engagement Teams
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Work Placement Coordinators
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Interest in hosting an IPCO.
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How regional coverage could be achieved, including: how IPCOs might manage the additional workload; how this would change the role (balancing strategic and operational work); and the implications for governance.
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How best to distribute IPCOs, given that some NHS regions have more ICSs than others.
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How quickly the project could start, with the goal of having IPCOs in post by 1st October 2025.
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Risks and mitigations.
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Sustainability of the project’s impact beyond the funding period, including alternative ways IPCOs could be funded after DfE funding ceases.
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Healthcare Volunteer of the Year
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Operational Support Worker of the Year
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Outstanding Lifetime Contribution to Healthcare
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Apprentice of the Year
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Best Healthcare Workforce Collaboration
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Clinical Support Worker of the Year
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Dedication to a Lifelong Learning Culture
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Digital Innovation Award
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Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Champion
Email: Jennifer.stone19@nhs.net
NHS 10 Year Health Plan – Primary Care
As you may be aware, the government is currently holding the biggest national conversation about the future of the NHS, inviting the public to input via the change.nhs.uk portal to shape the 10 Year Health Plan.
We know trainees and NHS staff are working harder than ever to get services back on track, to get waiting lists down, and consistently deliver the best care. Yet too often we are struggling to provide the right care, in the right place and at the right time. This is no good for patients or colleagues providing care.
Change is needed, and we also know that many of the solutions we need are already here, working, training, or volunteering somewhere in the NHS today.
For the 10-year health plan to meet the needs of patients and service users, we need their voices, experiences, and ideas of how thing could improve.
Alongside the ongoing call for the public, staff, and the wider health and care community to share their thoughts on the ambitions for the NHS and healthcare, we are making a specific ask of healthcare trainees to engage in Change NHS through using:
- Community engagement – our Workshop in a Box contains everything you need to engage a group of people in a conversation about the 10-year health plan for health. A facilitator briefing guide, a set of slides to help you run the workshop and a feedback form to share back what you hear. The online deadline for returns is 14 February 2025
- Change.nhs.uk – individuals are also encouraged to tell us about their own experiences to help us prioritise key challenges facing health and care or suggest an idea for improving the NHS.
Whether you have a little to say or a lot, your views, experiences, and ideas will shape immediate steps and long-term changes: a new 10-Year Health Plan for the NHS.
National Workforce Reporting Service – Further Help & Support
Monthly GP practice and PCN data is extracted from the NWRS for the preparation of workforce statistics at the end of January. NWRS data extracts are taken monthly for both general practices and PCNs. The information provided is published at aggregate level. Visit the website to see how NHSE use the data you provide.
To find out more about the NWRS, you can:
- watch a 2 minute video about why your staff data is important
- read a summary of what’s changed & what’s coming soon
- watch a ‘How to’ video to learn how to access and amend your data
- email ssd.nationalservicedesk@nhs.net quoting ‘NWRS’ in the subject
- request a support session with our team by emailing us quoting ‘NWRS support call request’
Log into your Strategic Data Collections Service (SDCS) account before 31 January to check your workforce details are updated. For enquiries and support requests, please contactssd.nationalservicedesk@nhs.net.
UEL Medical Education
I am Professor Joanne Harris, and I am delighted to have joined the University of East London this month as the new Dean of Medicine. In addition to my education role, I also practice as a GP in London. The University is embarking on an exciting initiative to establish a GMC-accredited MBBS undergraduate School of Medicine at the Stratford campus, with the first cohort of students set to begin in 2027. As we develop this programme, we aim to leverage the comprehensive resources of the UEL Health Campus to create enriching learning opportunities for local healthcare providers, including both medical and Allied Health professionals.
Building on the success of the workshop series as part of the Postgraduate Academy of Health education programme, previously developed and delivered to our Health Fellows, we are expanding these offerings to a broader audience. As part of this initiative, we will be hosting a series of lunchtime webinars covering a range of topics relevant to local healthcare providers.
The webinars will be conducted online and will run from 1:00 PM to 1:30 PM on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays. Details of our current programme are listed below.
If you have suggestions for future topics, I would love to hear from you. Please feel free to email me at jharris1@uel.ac.uk.
Workshops are from 5-7pm at our UEL Stratford Campus. Please book here
- Wednesday 12/02/2025 “How can we sustain lifestyle changes in our patients?” Chair: Prof Anwar Khan, Speakers – Dr Patricia Smith & Prof Sir Sam Everington (TBC)
- Wednesday 09/04/2025“Assisted dying legislation- what does the public want?”
- Wednesday 11/06/2025“Should the NHS be privatised?”
- Wednesday 17/09/2025 “Are we over-diagnosing neurodiversity?”
- Wednesday 12/11/2025 “Marijuana should be legalised
Lunchtime webinars from 1pm – 1.30pm
- Thursday 12/02/2025 “Is it time for a 4 year MBBS curriculum?” Prof Jo Harris
- Tuesday 25/03/2025 “Can SIM training replace face-to-face teaching?” Rob Waterson/ Dr Hamid Merchant
- Wednesday 30/04/2025 “Educating GenZ without zzzzzz” Prof Anwar Khan
- Thursday 22/05/2025 “Optimal mentorship and staff wellbeing” Dr Matthew Arnold/ Dr Sophie Bokhari
- Date tbc – Enhancing students competencies when concerns are raised” Steph Messner/ Richard Harty
- Date tbc – Effective learning objectives – Caroline Doolan
- Date tbc – Streamlining portfolio development – Teresa McMahon
- Date tbc – PGA by publication – Dr Laura Vanderbloemen
Addressing Health Equity in Primary Care: A Programme for North East London
The North East London Health Equity Academy is pleased to offer a second opportunity to take part in its Health Equity Development Programme, aimed at people working in primary care who are keen to develop the knowledge, skills and resourcefulness to take action to address health inequalities.
Offering simple, practical support the programme will develop the capability of PCN/Practice staff who wish to address particular areas of health inequalities through their work.
The offer includes:
- Five monthly modules of skill development and organisational development support
- Support (if required) from the ICB Insights Team who will provide the data you need for the issue you want to tackle in your PCN/Practice
- Additional bespoke 1-1 consultancy support between modules if needed
Benefits for PCN/practice:
- Delivering more equitable care
- Probable reduction in appointments requested (depending on issue addressed)
- Potential for higher QOF payment
- An intervention that works will save time repeating interventions that don’t work
Programme content:
- Creating the conditions for impactful work
- Designing an intervention: Building relationships and shared understanding
- Delivering an intervention for a wicked problem
- Continuous improvement and embedding
- Collective learning and spread
Dates & location
All sessions will take place at Unex Tower, Stratford, E15, on Wednesdays, 9.30am – 12.30pm on 5th March, 2nd April, 14th May, 18th June and 23rd July.
What we ask of you:
- Your PCN/practice leadership will enable the work.
- A small team from your PCN/practice will be involved in doing the work. This may include, for example, a Practice Manager, a Social Prescribing Link Worker, a care coordinator and a GP. This team may need to draw upon other expertise within their organisation if needed.
- A minimum of two people from this team to attend each module.
- Undertake some practical work between modules back in your organisation. This might involve, for example, having a conversation with members of the target group to design a new offer or intervention. Planning for this will be done in-module.
Programme Directors
The programme will be led by Martin Fischer, Director of Fischer Associates, and Alyson McGregor MBE, Director of Altogether Better. To chat about the programme before applying please email Alyson.
Interested? Apply by 16th February:
Places on this innovative programme are open to up to 7 PCN/practice teams and will be offered on the basis of an expression of interest followed by a short, informal interview w/c 17th February.
To submit your expression of interest CLICK HERE to access our online form.
Enabling Staff Retention in the Primary Care Workforce Across Professions
NHS England (London) held the bi-monthly London Primary Care Regional Retention Steering Group with key stakeholders this week, which included some excellent presentations relating to retention in primary care. Speakers presented informative workforce data connected to training pipelines, retention of GPs, nurses, APs and non-clinical roles in primary care, with further highlights shared from SEL ICB recent Practice Manager, GP and Practice Nurse Focus Groups. Digital transformation and digital enablers for Primary care which impact staff retention and wellbeing, inspiring staff to stay working in general practice were also discussed.
See below for highlights and key themes from discussions.
Highlight on numbers:
- London GP FTE turnover rate fell from 8.55% from Sept. 2023 to 6.2% in Sept. 2024; equating to 160 less GPs leaving general practice in London, compared to previous year. (Percentage includes GP locums and excludes GPs in training)
- 2451 additional placement hours in 23/24 vs 22/23 for Pre-Registration Nursing in primary care
- Total of 545 SPIN GP and GPN London fellows on programme in 2023/24 & 114 GPs on London Retainer Scheme to bolster retention
- 182 (total headcount) Advanced Practitioner trainees across Nursing, Pharmacy, Paramedicine and Occupational Therapy
- 427 FTE employed Advanced Practitioner (AP) workforce across Nursing, Pharmacy, Paramedicine, Physiotherapy, Dietetics & Podiatry
Themes from SEL ICB Practice Manager, GP and Practice Nurse Focus Groups held:
Retaining SEL nurses in primary care:
- Involve nurses in practice meetings and decision-making
- Proactively plan for development, new models and succession planning and have enough nurses to mentor new nurses
- Improvement of standard T&Cs and salary for cost of living in London (also pending national GP contract negotiations and the collective action outcomes)
- Address the expectation to train/ undertake additional training in own time, and the importance of ‘feeling appreciated’.
Why NQ/early career GPs are leaving SEL:
- 10 minutes is too little time for an appointment and need longer to address complex needs
- GPs wanting flex in their lives and not wanting to stay in one place for their whole career
- Portfolio working remains important
- Training of GPs does not equip them for GP partnership role
- Many would stay if worked in supportive practices e.g. manageable workloads in career transitions etc
Changes Practice Managers would like to see in their practice to improve retention, recruitment, and staff development:
- One small thing; make sure everyone gets a real break at lunchtime
- More attractive staff packages, with opportunities to progress, and pay rises on recognition
- Training for reception managers to take on management role for that team
- One day to work away from GP land and focus on important info. and have time for innovation
- ICB staff to spend time in practices, as disconnect between the front line and the system e.g. act on what we say and not what fits existing plans
How digital transformation in primary care is impacting staff retention and wellbeing:
- Automating manual administrative processes using digital automation, has significantly reduced workload improving practice administrative staff morale and wellbeing
- Use of Coaching apps has actively encouraged practice staff wellbeing and access to learning and development opportunities
- Use of AI Scribe tool (with appropriate training and clinical oversight) reduces clinician cognitive burden and administrative workload, saving GP clinicians up to an hour each working day, helping them achieve a better work/life balance.