Call for Evidence – Health Education and Training Inquiry

The Higher Education Commission, in partnership with the All-Party Parliamentary Health Group, is launching a Call for Evidence to gather evidence for the inquiry, ‘How can education and training systems best support the recruitment, retention, and development of NHS staff?’.

The NHS is facing a severe workforce crisis that threatens patient care, with over 111,000 vacancies across the system. England has far fewer doctors per capita than international averages, needing 40,000 more to catch up, and there are over 25,000 nurse vacancies alongside a 35% drop in nursing applications since 2021. Similar shortages affect midwives and allied health professionals, worsened by high levels of burnout and attrition.

Efforts to expand training are hindered by financial and staffing pressures in universities and colleges. Although government plans aim to boost training places and reform curricula, turning these ambitions into sustainable solutions remains a major challenge.

This inquiry will examine how education policy, provider practice, and wider system structures can be strengthened to meet the NHS’s current and future workforce needs.

The Call for Evidence seeks insights from education providers, NHS trusts, professional bodies, regulators, students, and other stakeholders involved in healthcare education and training.

Evidence, including practical case studies and data, will be used to develop actionable policy recommendations for national and local government, the NHS and education providers.

The deadline for the submission of evidence is Friday 28 November 2025, 23:59. Evidence should be submitted here via Microsoft Forms: https://forms.office.com/e/NMm6mPcAYm

Any reports, additional data, or responses that exceed the form’s text limits should be emailed to rhiannon.tuckett-jones@policyconnect.org.uk.

This inquiry is kindly sponsored by the University of Derby, ACCA, and iheed.