What is the NHS Management and Leadership Framework?

Admin - December 23, 2024December 23, 2024

At the 2024 NHS Providers event, NHS Chief Executive, Amanda Pritchard, announced a developing work plan for the Our Leadership and Management Programme, to help reform leadership and management in the NHS. This programme aims to ensure the NHS has confident and competent leaders equipped with the skills they need to address the challenges facing the NHS today and into the future.  

Why Is NHS England developing the Leadership and Management Programme?

The High-Quality Care for All Review (Lord Darzi), 2008, calls for a significant investment in management and leadership, including for clinicians through revised curricula at undergraduate level. The National Leadership Council is established.
The Berwick Review (Don Berwick), 2013, emphasises the importance of leadership in creating cultures in which learning and improvement are at the fore.
The Better Leadership for Tomorrow Review (Lord Rose), 2015, makes recommendations to improve training, performance management and support to leaders to attract talent and transform the NHS.
The NHS People Plan (NHS England), 2020, contains a comprehensive set of actions that aim to improve the experience of all staff, and embed compassionate and inclusive leadership throughout the NHS.
The Inquiry Report in to Mid Staffordshire FT (Robert Francis), 2013, finds that an unhealthy culture, as well as managers and leaders disengaged from care quality contributed to care failings. It calls for a fundamental change in culture.
The Snowy White Peaks of the NHS (Roger Kline), 2014, highlights a lack of diversity in NHS leadership. It concludes that leaders should resemble the communities they serve, and links the discrimination some experience with worse patient experience and outcomes.
The Kark Review (Tom Kark), 2019, finds the FPPT has no discernible effect on patient care or safety. It recommends strengthening the accountability framework for leadership and improving the support and training leaders receive throughout their career. — A Timeline of reviews that have highlighted the need for a Leadership and Management Programme.

The Leadership and Management Programme responds to leadership reviews including the Messenger Review (2022) and Kark Review (2019), and supports the NHS Long Term Workforce Plan by investing in the professional development of leaders and managers.

What is included in the Leadership and Management Programme?

The programme has 3 workstreams which will set the leadership and management standards, improve the leadership and management development offer, and nurture and deploy talent across the NHS.

What is the Leadership and Management Framework and is It different from the Leadership and Management Programme?

As part of the setting of the leadership and management standards, NHS England will introduce a new Management and Leadership Framework as part of the Leadership and Management Programme to create greater parity with clinical and other professions and consistency at all levels of management and leadership. The framework is being developed now and implementation is expected to start in summer 2025.

Core Components of the Leadership and Management Framework

The framework incorporates:

A Management and Leadership Code for Health and Social Care
Standards and competencies at defined levels from entry level to executive level, setting out expectations at each level (NHS only)
Core curricula for every level of management and leadership, linking directly to the code, standards and competencies

The road ahead for the Leadership and Management Framework

NHS England is leading the framework design with partners such as the Chartered Management Institute and Professional Standards Authority. It is also coordinating its efforts with the Department of Health and Social Cares’ consultation on manager regulation.

The framework will be co-designed and developed with the service and other key internal and external stakeholders including the Professional Standards Authority and Skills for Care.

Expected milestones include:

Code of Practice approved winter 2024
Standards and competencies approved Spring 2025
Curriculum approved early summer 2025
Implementation commences late summer 2025

How you can get involved in shaping the Leadership and Management Framework

Engagement will be via a number of channels to enable maximum input, including NHS England webpage, the Future NHS collaboration site.

Learn more about the Leadership and Management Framework

For further details, visit the programme here website.