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Press release: Nearly 100 per cent of NHS staff have moved onto Agenda for Change pay and conditions

19 Jan 2006

Nearly all NHS staff have now been moved on to Agenda for Change terms and conditions. The latest figures show that 96 per cent of staff in England had been moved to their new pay band at the end of December 2005.

NHS Employers director of pay modernisation Peter Smith said: "moving hundreds of thousands of staff onto Agenda for Change pay bands in just 12 months is a huge achievement and is testimony to the hard work and dedication of the NHS staff and union representatives who implemented it, working in partnership.

"NHS Employers has been supporting trusts to make the transition and will continue to help those few trusts that are still experiencing some difficulties."

Just over 90 per cent of staff are now receiving their Agenda for Change pay with a further five per cent due to see their new pay rates from this month's salary. All pay is backdated to October 2004.

Trusts have also been working hard to implement the first stage of the career development element of the Agenda for Change agreement. At the end of December, nearly 80 per cent of NHS posts in England had been covered by a Knowledge and Skills Framework post outline. Staff and their managers are now using these outlines to develop individual personal development plans as they begin the development review process.

Notes for editors

•  Agenda for Change is the most radical shake up of the NHS pay system since the NHS began in 1948. It applies to over one million NHS staff with the exception of doctors, dentists and the most senior managers.
• The package was negotiated between UK health departments and trade unions and is worth, on average, an extra 12.5 per cent on basic pay over three years.
  
• It means that staff are paid on the basis of the jobs they do and the skills and knowledge they apply to those jobs. The new system will ensure fair pay and a clearer system for career progression. It has also included the introduction of common terms and conditions across the NHS.
  
• The Agenda for Change pay system has been rolled out from 1 December 2004, with pay backdated to 1 October 2004.
   
• Further information on Agenda for Change is available at www.nhsemployers.org/pay-conditions/agenda-for-change.cfm
  

Contact details

The press office provides a comprehensive service to keep journalists informed about the work of NHS Employers.

If you have a media enquiry, please contact the press office team:

• Gemma Jeffcoate
  0207 074 3308 or gemma.jeffcoate@nhsemployers.org
• Emma Stafford
  0207 074 3307 or emma.stafford@nhsemployers.org

For out of hours media enquiries, please contact the duty press officer on 07880 500726.

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