58 NHS staff to lose jobs

The job cuts announced by County Durham and Darlington Community Health Services yesterday come on top of the 500 NHS administrative and managerial posts which are already going in the region.

Staff affected by the proposed cuts have been informed at a series of meetings across the area.

It does not affect hands-on clinical staff, including district nurses and health visitors, and the aim of the cuts is to move resources from back room offices and into frontline community services.

County Durham and Darlington Community Health Services, or CDDCHS, is the provider wing of the County Durham and Darlington Primary Care Trust.

It mainly employs a range of NHS clinical staff, including community nurses, but it does have a number of administrative and managerial posts.

Because of Government rules, the trust is not allowed to commission health care and provide health care, so the organisation was effectively split in half last year.

CDDCHS has been asked to find £4.3m in management savings by April next year.

An announcement that a total of 110 jobs are to go at County Durham trust – the commissioning wing of the primary care trust – was made two weeks ago.

The County Durham jobs were among 500 administrative posts to be cut across the whole region.

A spokesman for CDDCHS said the organisation is now “inviting expressions of interest from those staff wishing to be considered for voluntary redundancy”.

The spokesman said the CDDCHS was working with the trade unions over the changes. The consultation process, which began yesterday, is expected to continue until October 6.

A spokesman said it was anticipated that the number of management and administration posts to be reduced will be about 58.

Interim chief operating officer for CDDCHS Tom Hunt said: “I am humbled by the dedication I see on a day to day basis from staff across County Durham and Darlington. I am fully committed to keeping everyone informed throughout this difficult process.”