APPG SRH holds meeting on addressing SRH workforce challenges

On 23 November 2022, the All Party Parliamentary Group on Sexual and Reproductive Health (APPG SRH) held a meeting to discuss the steps that need to be taken to ensure the NHS is equipped to deliver for women’s reproductive health. The meeting was chaired by the APPG’s Chair Dame Diana Johnson MP DBE and held in the context of the development of the NHS Workforce Plan, as announced by the Government.

During the meeting, the Group heard that the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) workforce has reached a breaking point – with a lack of funding and fragmentation of commissioning responsibilities creating disincentives for training and education. This is in the context of funding cuts to SRH services, with public health budgets having reduced by 24% since 2015/16.

This meeting of the APPG SRH brought together over 20 parliamentarians, officials, and community stakeholders, including representatives from the Royal Colleges of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and Nursing, MSI Reproductive Choices and Health Education England. The Government’s Women’s Health Ambassador was also in attendance.

The meeting included presentations from the following on the urgent workforce challenges facing the sector:

• Dr Janet Barter, President of the Faculty of Sexual and Reproductive Health (FSRH)
• Ruth Bailey, Advanced Nurse Practitioner and FSRH Council Nurse Representative
• Professor Adrian Brooke, Medical Director, Workforce Alignment at Health Education England (HEE) 

The group discussed a number of key areas where action was needed and committed to publishing a set of policy asks to share with the Government in the context of the NHS Workforce Plan.

You can read a summary of the event here. The APPG's policy asks on workforce are available here.

If you have any questions about this event or the work of the APPG SRH please get in contact via appg@fsrh.org.