• Royal College of Nursing publishes data which finds number of vacant nursing posts have doubled
• Four in five nursing directors feel their hospital relies on goodwill of staff to keep services going
• We say gap between supply of trained staff and increasing demand has set the NHS on a collision course in terms of the quality and safety of care patients receive

The Royal College of Nursing has published data indicating that the number of vacant nursing posts has doubled since 2013.

The RCN says this equates to 40,000 unfilled nursing posts in England.

It has also published research by ComRes which suggests that four out of five nursing directors are worried that their hospital relies on the goodwill of staff to keep services running.

Commenting on the findings, the director of policy and strategy at NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery, said:

“These figures are further evidence of the severe workforce pressures NHS trusts face. An important part of the problem is that we are seven years into a period of pay restraint. This must end, and politicians must be clear about when during the lifetime of the next parliament it will happen and how.

[Pay restraint] must end, and politicians must be clear about when during the lifetime of the next parliament it will happen and how.

“The huge gap that is growing between the supply of trained staff and the increasing demand for services has set the NHS on a collision course in terms of the timeliness, quality and safety of care patients receive.

“The reductions in mental health and community nursing numbers since 2010 are particularly worrying, as we seek to ensure that mental health is placed on an equal footing with physical health, and work to provide more NHS care for patients closer to home.”