Mental health trusts to make 15% job cuts

Mental health trusts are planning acute jobs cuts with some planning to shed 15% from their workforces, it was revealed today.

Confirmed, planned and potential job cuts across the NHS total 53,150, Freedom of Information requests made by anti-cuts campaign group False Economy found.

This is despite the government’s pledge to protect the NHS from cuts, which in practice has meant that the health service will receive a slight real terms spending cut from 2011-15, compared with a 28% reduction in council funding.

The reductions in mental health trusts are particularly acute, with cuts of over 15% at the following trusts: Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership, Derbyshire Mental Health Services, Mersey Care, and Kent and Medway and Social Care Partnership.

This follows warnings that mental health services risk being squeezed by rising demand and falling resources.

False Economy also found that Belfast Health and Social Care Trust will have made a 9% net reduction in jobs in 2010-11, a total of 1,755 jobs.

Though most of the cuts are likely to be achieved through natural wastage, False Economy warned there would have to be some compulsory redundancies.

The news builds upon significant cuts to local authority jobs, with 75% of councils planning to make redundancies this year.

Unison general secretary Dave Prentis said: “The Tories are not the party of the NHS – they are the party that will destroy our NHS. Losing 50,000 health workers will hurt. It’s only a matter of time before the toll of bed shortages and ward closures mount up. With fewer nurses on wards, the return of long waiting lists, and a rise in cancelled operations, patient care will be an early casualty.”

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