Doctors and Nurses: Labour Turnover
(asked on 27th January 2025) - View Source
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government what the retention rate was for NHS (1) nurses, (2) junior doctors, and (3) consultant doctors, in the financial years (a) 2022–23, (b) 2023–24, and (c) 2024–25 to date.
The following table shows the retention rates of nurses, resident doctors, and consultant doctors who are employed by National Health Service hospital trusts or integrated care boards in England, between 30 September 2021 and 30 September 2024:
Period | Leavers rate |
September 2021 to September 2022 | 11.5% |
September 2022 to September 2023 | 9.9% |
September 2023 to September 2024 | 8.8% |
Source: NHS England Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics.
In addition, the following table shows the annual leaver rates from the NHS of resident doctors by grade, in NHS trusts and other core organisations in England, between 30 September 2021 and 30 September 2024:
Period | Resident doctors: | Leavers rate |
September 2021 to September 2022 | Specialty Registrar | 23.8% |
Core Training | 20.3% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 2 | 53.0% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 1 | 20.1% | |
September 2022 to September 2023 | Specialty Registrar | 23.4% |
Core Training | 17.8% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 2 | 50.5% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 1 | 17.9% | |
September 2023 to September 2024 | Specialty Registrar | 22.6% |
Core Training | 15.6% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 2 | 44.7% | |
Foundation Doctor Year 1 | 18.3% |
Source: NHS England Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics.
Finally, the following table shows the annual leaver rates from the NHS of consultants, in NHS trusts and other core organisations in England, between 30 September 2021 and 30 September 2024:
Period | Leavers rate |
September 2021 to September 2022 | 6.0% |
September 2022 to September 2023 | 5.3% |
September 2023 to September 2024 | 4.9% |
Source: NHS England Hospital and Community Health Service Workforce Statistics.
The data is presented for the 12-month period to each September to allow for the inclusion of the latest data available. This data is based on the headcount of staff and shows people leaving active service, and would therefore include those going on or returning from maternity leave or a career break, as well as staff moving to other health and care sectors such are general practice, social care, or private provision. This is important particularly in relation to resident doctor retention rates, as these staff will be moving between sectors, particularly general practice, in a planned way as part of training programmes. Leaving rates are calculated by dividing the number of leavers in the period by the average number of staff in that category at the beginning and end of the period.