Embargoed until 00:01, 3 November 2017

Responding to the QMR by the King’s Fund, the head of analysis at NHS Providers, Phillippa Hentsch, said:

“It is worrying that over half of finance directors feel that patient care has got worse in their area, particularly as we head into the busy winter period.

“The report shows that trusts will once again have to rely on one-off savings this year, and the £1.8bn sustainability and transformation funding.

“As highlighted in our recent report Recovering provider deficits: has it worked and at what cost? this sustainability funding is absolutely essential in the continuing effort to reduce the deficit. The money is tied to trusts meeting financial and performance targets, so it is a real concern that most finance directors feel they won’t be able to meet the A&E target and more than one in three are not confident they will meet their financial control total this year. 

“As these findings make clear, it’s hard to overstate the financial pressures trust face. The forthcoming budget is a chance to bridge that gap between what we ask the NHS to deliver and the funding available.”