Systems still reliant on agency staff

Six systems are still using more than 30% of their temporary staffing spend to employ agency workers, HSJ research has revealed. 

The investigation also highlights that the NHS will need to reduce spending on bank staff by almost as much as that on agency workers for the first time. 

Internal NHS England figures seen by HSJ reveal providers were on course to spend £8.3bn on temporary staffing in 2024-25, down from just under £10bn the previous year.

Three quarters of the overall spend in 2024-25 (£6bn) went on employing bank workers, with the remainder used for agency staff. Providers have been encouraged to shift agency workers to their staff banks for a number of years. However, HSJ research has revealed some systems are still struggling to move away from a reliance on agency staff. 

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Source: HSJ, 22 April 2025

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