Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will make an assessment of the potential effect of pressures caused by the covid-19 outbreak on NHS staff retention in a) Slough, (b) the South East, (c) England, and (d) the UK.

No assessment has been made at the United Kingdom level, as this is a devolved matter.

As of July 2021, there was a decrease in the rates of staff leaving in the trusts serving patients in Slough: Berkshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust; Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust; and Royal Berkshire NHS Foundation Trust. For all staff in these trusts, the South East region and England, the rates of staff leaving are still below pre-pandemic levels.

The NHS People Plan, published in 2020, includes a retention package for all staff to promote and prioritise wellbeing. In addition, the NHS People Recovery Task Force and the NHS Retention Programme are working to ensure staff feel supported to stay within the National Health Service.