10 March 2025
It is no secret; the NHS is facing unprecedented financial and workforce challenges. The 2025/26 budget constraints, increasing patient demand, and severe staff shortages have created a perfect storm that threatens service delivery. As NHS leaders navigate this difficult landscape, interim recruitment is a vital solution. Hiring interim talent offers a range of benefits; flexibility, expertise, and immediate impact needed to sustain operations and drive the strategic transformational improvements needed. With 18 years’ experience recruiting interims into healthcare organisations, Sian Williams has seen first hand how leveraging interim professionals can be a game-changer for NHS organisations striving to maintain quality care while balancing budgets – below she shares her thoughts on the benefits of hiring interim talent in the NHS during a financial and workforce crisis.
The financial and workforce challenges facing the NHS
It’s well documented that the NHS is under constant financial pressure, with funding gaps making it increasingly difficult to sustain high-quality patient care. Additionally, workforce shortages, which have been exacerbated recently by Brexit, the COVID-19 pandemic, burnout, and recruitment freezes, have left many Trusts struggling to balance the day to day demands. The combination of these issues has led to:
Hiring effective interim talent provides a strategic advantage, offering both short-term relief and long-term value.
The advantages of an interim workforce
The primary benefit of hiring interim professionals is flexibility. Unlike permanent hires, interim staff can be brought in on short notice, for specific durations and with clear objectives, allowing organisations to respond quickly to evolving needs. Whether covering for maternity leave, sickness absences, or unexpected departures, interim hires provide a seamless solution without the long-term financial commitment.
Additionally, interims can be deployed in response to fluctuating patient demand and to focus on delivering government priorities.
Some will argue that interims come with a higher hourly or daily rate; however, the overall cost-effectiveness of interim recruitment is clear when compared to the expenses associated with long-term vacancies, agency fees, or the recruitment of permanent staff. Interims are paid for the duration of their contract without the added costs of pension contributions, long-term benefits, or redundancy payouts.
Using interim professionals can reduce reliance on expensive agency staff, which often results in significant cost savings for NHS Trusts. Many interims operate under fixed-term contracts or through NHS frameworks, ensuring transparency and budget control.
Interim professionals bring a wealth of experience and sector-specific knowledge, enabling them to hit the ground running. Unlike permanent hires who may require extensive onboarding, interims are accustomed to “hitting the ground running” and delivering results from day one.
Many interim hires are specialists in their field, often possessing skills that are difficult to find in the permanent workforce. Whether it’s turnaround specialists, finance experts, digital transformation consultants, or operational leaders, interims provide high-level expertise to drive key initiatives forward or simply carry some of the day-to-day burden. This is particularly beneficial for NHS organisations looking to implement and deliver strategic transformative changes while managing day-to-day operations.
The NHS is undergoing significant transformation, from digital healthcare initiatives to new models of care. However, implementing change while maintaining daily operations is a considerable challenge. Interim professionals, particularly those with change management expertise, can play a crucial role in leading and embedding transformation projects.
For example, many NHS trusts are moving towards integrated care models, requiring new ways of working across different services. Interim transformation specialists can provide the leadership and knowledge needed to drive these changes forward, ensuring that strategic goals are met without disruption to frontline services.
Certain roles in the NHS are notoriously difficult to fill. Recruitment for these positions can take months, leaving crucial gaps in service delivery. Hiring an interim ensures that these roles are covered while permanent recruitment processes continue, allowing time to make the right appointment.
In some cases, interims can act as a bridge, helping to stabilise teams or develop existing staff so that they are ready to step into leadership positions in the future. This approach supports internal talent development while maintaining operational continuity.
Conclusion
As the NHS continues to navigate financial pressures and workforce shortages, the need for agile, cost-effective solutions has never been greater. Interim recruitment offers a practical and strategic approach to addressing these challenges, providing the flexibility, expertise, and immediate impact required to maintain high standards of patient care.
By leveraging interim talent effectively, NHS organisations can alleviate workforce pressures, drive transformation, and ensure that services remain resilient in the face of ongoing challenges. From a recruitment perspective, investing in interim professionals is not just a short-term fix; it should be seen as a strategic decision that delivers long-term value to the NHS and the patients it serves.
Has the NHS hit rock bottom? See what Sian says in this article.
Sian Williams has over 18 years’ experience supporting organisations with their recruitment needs. Specialising in senior interim management and consultancy services to the NHS, she provides her clients with the flexible talent needed to solve business problems and deliver transformation and change. Specialising across the system, Sian works with providers, commissioners, regional and national teams, and regulatory bodies to enable NHS organisations to achieve their business outcomes.
You can connect with Sian on LinkedIn or email her at sian.williams@andersonquigley.com.
