Healthcare employment continues to grow, but recruitment pressures have eased. The number of vacancies per 1,000 healthcare jobs has fallen from a post-pandemic peak of 46 in 2022 to 24 in 2026, indicating a better balance between workforce supply and employer demand.
Year | Vacancies per 1,000 jobs |
2019 | 31.5 |
2020 | 25.9 |
2021 | 31.5 |
2022 | 45.9 |
2023 | 39.6 |
2024 | 32.4 |
2025 | 26.3 |
2026 | 24.4 |
ONS Time Series JPB9 – UK Job Vacancies ratio per 1000 employee jobs – Human Health & Social Work, source: https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/timeseries/jpb9
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The UK healthcare labour market continued to rebalance in 2026. NHS staffing increased further, particularly among doctors, while vacancy levels declined across both the NHS and the wider health sector. While recruitment pressures have eased, the population aged 65 and over continues to grow faster than the overall population, reinforcing long-term demand for healthcare services.
Latest Indicators at a glance:
Health & social work employment increased 0.47%
NHS doctor FTE increased 3.6%.
NHS nursing/midwifery FTE increased 1.18%.
Industry vacancies fell 6.7%.
NHS medical vacancies fell 2.7%.
NHS nursing vacancies fell 15.6%.
The population aged 65+ grew faster than the total population
NATIONAL LABOUR MARKET - (Feb-Apr 2026)
Unemployment rate 4.9% (↑ 0.3pp on previous year)
Labour Force Participation rate: 79% ((↑0.3 pp year-on-year)
HEALTH CARE INDUSTRY
Employment (Human health & social work activities)
Jobs: 5,090,000 (Mar-26)
+0.47% (year-on-year)
Hours Worked (Human health & social work activities)
30.2* (Jan-Mar, 2026)
-0.21% (year-on-year)
*average weekly hours worked (reflects workforce mix, including part-time employment, not simply changes in workload)
Vacancies - Human health & social work activities Industry (Mar-May 2026)
124,000
-6.7% change (y-o-y)
NHS ENGLAND WORKFORCE
(Hospital and Community Health Services, April 2026)
Doctors (*all grades)
153,389
+ 3.6% year-on-year
Nurses and Midwives
398,208
+ 1.18% year-on-year (led by midwives)
Total Staff
1,373,838
-0.1% y-o-y
GP Workforce (May 2026)
GPs: 38,821 (+2.6% year-on-year)
Nurses: 16,702 (-0.2% year-on-year)
*Direct patient care and non-clinical FTE staff increased year-on-year.
VACANCIES (NHS England, March 2026)
Staff group | Change YoY |
Medical | ▼ 2.7% |
Nursing | ▼ 15.6% |
Total NHS | ▼ 2.6% |
Medical Staff ~7,474 FTE vacancies (-2.67% year-on-year)
Nursing Staff ~ 21,643 FTE vacancies (-15.56% year-on-year)
NHS England total workforce ~ 97,475 FTE vacancies (-2.64% year-on-year)
UK DEMOGRAPHICS (latest annual midyear 2024, national)
Population +1.49% year-on-year.
The 65+ population +1.84% year-on-year.
The share of the population aged 65+ , ↑0.07 ppts year-on-year
OUTLOOK
Recruitment conditions are likely to continue improving if vacancy levels remain on their current trajectory. However, continued growth in the older population, combined with ongoing training bottlenecks, suggests workforce pressures are unlikely to disappear in the medium term.
CURRENT WORKFORCE THEMES - UK HEALTH CARE
Recruitment is improving as vacancies continue to ease.
Training capacity and bottleneck constraints remain a key workforce issue.
Policy is placing greater emphasis on domestic workforce development.
Service delivery is increasingly focussing on productivity, technology, and bringing care closer to home.
