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Regional / national dimension
National distribution of the health sector workforce:
- England 82%
- Scotland 9%
- Wales 6%
- Northern Ireland 3%
In the Midlands and southern regions employment in the health and social care sector is forecast to grow at a slightly higher rate than in northern regions.
The high costs of living and a buoyant labour market in London and the South East impact on the recruitment of staff. In England, some regions have above average 3 months vacancy rates:
- London
- South East
- East of England
However, there are some variations in 3 months vacancy levels within regions. For instance, there are on average lower vacancy levels for qualified nurses, midwives and health visiting staff in Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire, compared to Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire.
At regional and sub-regional level, there are variations across single occupational groups. For instance, in the North West 3 month vacancy levels for medical and dental staff, plus consultants are highest, but within that region Cheshire and Merseyside are less affected.
The South East, South West, East Midlands, plus the Yorkshire and Humber regions have greater proportions of the workforce with no qualifications who are seeking qualifications.
Source: Skills for Health 2006, Working Futures (spatial report) 2006 and NHS Vacancy Survey 2005
Keywords
3 months vacancy rates are calculated as a percentage of the staff in post plus the number of 3 months vacancies.
Projected employment levels, changes and employment shares for health and social work by nation and region, 2004-2014
Source: Working Futures (spatial report) 2006, tables 2.2-14.2. Based on CE/IER estimates.
Regional data
Some regions include information based on 2003-2006 Local Delivery Plans (LDPs), which are now out-of-date, so some caution is required when reading the information. It should be noted that concerns have been expressed about the robustness of the data in earlier LDPs, where national targets have often been broken down to a regional level.
With the recent reduction from 28 to 10 Strategic Health Authorities regional overviews might be easier to achieve. Information on future skill needs is also likely to feature in research commissioned by the Local Learning and Skills Councils.
Source: Skills for Health 2005b
Further resources
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Strategic Health Authorities
- Strategic Health Authorities issue a 3 year Local Delivery Plan (LDP) for their area with the most recent covering 2005-2008. These LDPs contain projections of NHS workforce growth and an assessment of supply and demand issues. It should be noted that concerns have been expressed that about the robustness of these data.
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Community Health Profiles
- Website links through to local health profiles including information on key local statistics and health inequalities.
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Regional NHS websites
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National and regional data resources
Last cached: 2008-05-06 12:43 PM