NHS Confederation responds to announcement of funding for eligible non-NHS organisations for one-off AfC payments

Responding to an announcement from the Department of Health and Social Care that eligible non-NHS organisations can apply for funding for a one-off payment to staff, on top of a 5 per cent pay rise, Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said:

“This is a very welcome intervention from the government, and one that recognises some of our members concerns that excluding non-statutory providers from eligibility for central funding of the recent pay rise would threaten the ability of many to continue delivering vital health and care services. This extra funding will help provide some welcome certainty over the next year.

“However, this announcement will only provide a ‘one-off’ short-term financial boost for providers who, while grateful, will question what they are meant to do in subsequent years. Longer-term thinking and funding will be required to ensure that providers can continue to attract and retain the staff needed to meet the increasing demand for services.

“The fact that this one-off funding comes from the existing Department of Health and Social Care budget suggests that this may come at a cost elsewhere in the health service, and health leaders are clear that robbing Peter to pay Paul does the service no favours in the long run. While we are pleased that our calls have been heard and grateful that a short-term solution has been found for non-statutory providers, we are clear that the problem is only partially tackled and will need funding for future years to be found outside of existing budgets.”