This statistical publication presents an analysis of staff in post by main location, terms and conditions group, age, gender, and employment status. It also gives details of staff that have moved within the HPSS, those who have joined or left between April 2006 and March 2007 and information on vacancies.
In March 2007, the HPSS employed almost 77,000 people including bank/sessional and home help staff. The workforce accounted for just over 10% of all persons in employment in NI and is the largest and most complex workforce in Northern Ireland.
The statistical publication covers the majority (60,578) of the Hospital, Community and Social Services workforce but excludes home helps and bank/sessional staff, for which information is incomplete due to the variable nature of their employment.
Key Points – at March 2007
- The HPSS employed 60,578 people (excluding bank/sessional staff and home helps). This equates to 52,035.8 whole-time equivalent (WTE) staff, an increase of 33% since 1998.
- Female staff made up 79% of this total and 39% of all staff worked part-time.
- The largest staff group is nursing, midwifery and health visiting (including support staff), which comprises 35% of the total headcount. Forty four per cent of these staff work part-time.
- There were 3,776 (3,488.6 WTE) Medical and Dental Staff working in hospital and community settings (excluding General Practitioners). Just over a third (34%) of the Medical and Dental group were consultants.
- 82% of Social Service staff were female and 70% of staff work full-time.
- The Administration and Clerical group was the second largest group representing over a fifth (22%) of the workforce. Eighy three per cent of these staff were female, of which 38% worked part-time.
- There were 7,013 (6,210.8 WTE) Professional and Technical staff in 2007. Amongst this group are Allied Health Professionals, Therapists, Laboratory Staff, Clinical Scientists, Radiographers, etc.
- There were 988 (981.8 WTE) Ambulance personnel, 54% more than in 1998.
There were 8,224 (6,067.9 WTE) Ancillary and General staff, 19% more than in 1998. This group includes Porters, Orderlies, Catering Staff, Cleaners, etc, of which 84% worked part-time.
Staff who left the HPSS
- 4,320 staff left the HPSS in the year April 2006 - March 2007, representing just over 7% of the total.
- 44% of those who left the service had been working in Administration and Clerical or Ancillary and General grades.
- The Medical and Dental group experienced the highest rate of leavers at 13% of the group’s workforce followed by the Ancillary and General group at 12%
Staff who joined the HPSS
- A total of 6,235 staff joined the HPSS between 1 April 2006 and 31 March 2007.
- 76% of joiners were female.
- 1,577 people joined the Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting group representing 25% of the total joiners.
Trust Vacancy headcount figures at 31 March 2007
- At 31 March 2007, there were a total of 1,667 current Whole-Time Equivalent (WTE) vacancies in NI HSC organisations. This also includes 639 long-term WTE vacancies.
- The professional and technical staff group have the highest current vacancy rate at 4.1%, followed by the Ancillary & General workforce at 3.5% and the Nursing, Midwifery and Health Visiting workforce at 3.2%.
A full report of the March 2007 survey can be found at http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/psab-vacancy-survey-march2007-web.pdf
Notes to editors:
1. The Bulletin is published on the Departmental website at: http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/psab-vacancy-survey-march2007-web.pdf
2. The majority of the information was collected from the Human Resource Management Systems that are maintained by the various HPSS organisations. These are administrative personnel systems. The analyses presented in the Bulletin exclude home help staff and temporary bank staff (who fill staffing shortfalls to maintain service delivery). These groups were excluded because, due to the part-time and variable nature of their work, their input to the service is difficult to measure. Figures also exclude staff working in General Medical or General Dental practice.
3. Vacancy figures detailed in the publication were collected directly from the Trusts by means of a survey.
4. Vacancy rate is defined as the total number of vacancies expressed as a percentage of the total staff complement (i.e. vacancies plus staff in post).
5. Similar information is collected and published in England, Scotland and Wales, however definitional differences can make direct comparisons difficult.
6. Regional Services includes the following organisations: Central Services Agency, Northern Ireland Ambulance Service, Northern Ireland Blood Transfusion Service, Northern Ireland Guardian Ad Litem Agency, Northern Ireland Practice & Education Council, Northern Ireland Regional Medical Physics Agency, Northern Ireland Social Care Council, The Beeches Management Centre and the Regulation & Quality Improvement Authority. The Western Board includes Westcare Business Services.
7. WTE (Whole Time equivalent) is calculated by aggregating the total number of hours staff in a particular grade are contracted to work and dividing by the standard hours for that grade. In this way, part-time staff are converted into an equivalent number of 'whole-time' staff.
8. Figures for Administration and Clerical will include some senior direct care professional staff who have opted to take up senior manager contracts with their employers.
9. Additional Information:
Further information on the NI HPSS Workforce is available from:
Workforce Section
Project Support Analysis Branch
Department of Health, Social Services and Public Safety
Annexe 2, Castle Buildings
Stormont, BT4 3SQ
Tel: 028 9052 2342
Fax: 028 9052 3288
Email: workforcestatistics@dhsspsni.gov.uk
Internet: http://www.dhsspsni.gov.uk/index/stats_research/work_force/stats-research.htm
10. For media enquiries please contact the DHSSPS Press Office on 028 9052 0074, or out of hours contact the Duty Press Officer via pager number 076 9971 5440 and your call will be returned.
