On 5 September 2023, NHS England published its latest Workforce Disability Equality Standard (WDES) national report. For the first time, the report includes greater intersectional data and analysis, aligning with the intersectional ambitions of NHSE’s recently published EDI improvement plan.

It is worth noting that the full report does not include the most recent (2022) data for those WDES metrics taken directly from the NHS staff survey, and instead benchmarks against 2021 staff survey data. In this briefing, where possible, we have included 2022 staff survey data, published in March this year.

This briefing outlines the WDES report’s key findings and NHS Providers’ view.