NHS England workforce vacancy rates by staff group Q1 2018/19 - Q3 2024/25

Published by Jenny Yang, Mar 26, 2025

In December 2024, the vacancy rate of the NHS workforce in England stood at 7.16 percent. The NHS vacancy rate in the first quarter of 2023/2024 was 6.4 percent within the nursing workforce, the lowest in the analyzed period and over five percent among doctors. Vacancy figures decreased in March and June 2020, which corresponds to the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic when recruitment activity within the NHS was disrupted.

Vacancy rate of the NHS workforce in England from Q1 2018/19 to Q3 2024/25, by staff group

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Release date

February 2025

Region

United Kingdom (England)

Survey time period

June 2018 to December 2024

Supplementary notes

*All registered nurses (including midwives and health visitors).

A vacancy is defined as a post that is unfilled by permanent or fixed-term staff. Some vacant posts may be filled by agency or temporary staff, but these posts are still considered to be vacancies.
The number of vacancies is the difference between the number of reported full-time equivalent (FTE) permanent or fixed-term staff in post and planned workforce levels (i.e. the total funded or budgeted establishment on an FTE basis). The number of vacancies is on an FTE basis. The vacancy rate is a calculation of the FTE number of vacancies as a percentage of planned FTE workforce levels.

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