Leeds hospitals trust says finances are 'critical' amid £110m cut plan

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust runs services including Leeds General Infirmary and Leeds Children's Hospital

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust has told staff its finances are in a "critical situation" with "immediate action" needed to save £110m.

BBC News has obtained a staff email in which senior managers state the trust's finances are in "serious trouble".

Eleven hospital trusts in Yorkshire identified they must save £350m from their combined budgets in the year ahead, according to public documents.

The government said it was providing the NHS with "record funding".

Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust (LTHT) is one of the biggest in the country, spending £1.7bn a year.

Staff at the trust's children's hospital were told via email this month that senior managers were so concerned by their financial position that they feared "losing control of our decision making".

The email goes on to state that in order to curb budgets "vacancies will be held for 13 weeks" except for critical posts, with reductions in the use of temporary staff.

"These are people who are often brought in to cover a shortfall of staffing so to remove them would be very dangerous," said Sarah Dodsworth, Royal College of Nursing regional director.

"It would mean that the minimum staffing levels we're seeing now have further reduced - this will impact on nurses' ability to provide safe and effective care, it could result in harm to patients."

In March the trust's board was informed that its energy costs were 174% higher compared to the year before, adding to financial pressures.

In response to the leaked email, Simon Worthington, LTHT director of finance, said the £110m equated to 6% of the overall trust budget with "the majority" of savings already identified.

"We have identified a need to further reduce our pay spend on bank and agency staff because over recent years we've made a significant increase in permanent clinical staff.

"This week we have been focusing on how we can do this in an efficient and sustainable way while still keeping high-quality patient care at the centre of all that we do."

He added: "Thanks to the hard work and ideas of staff, we've identified a number of ways in which we can do this to help us bridge the financial gap."

Through reviewing documents produced by the other 10 NHS hospital trusts in West, North and South Yorkshire, BBC News identified the hospitals must collectively save £350m in the year ahead.

Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust said it faced "unpalatable options" in its efforts to save up to £39m.

Calderdale and Huddersfield NHS Foundation Trust papers stated its financial saving plan required it "to meet national asks around a reduction in headcount".

LTHT also runs St James's University Hospital in Leeds

Hospital trusts are facing growing pressures on their budgets, with a growing and ageing population presenting increasingly complex health needs.

The Department of Health and Social Care said NHS funding had reached record levels and was making a "real difference" in cutting waiting lists.

HM Treasury figures show that total government spending on the health service in Yorkshire and the Humber reached £16.5bn in 2023, up from £12bn prior to the 2019 general election.

Sally Gainsborough, Nuffield Trust senior policy analyst, said: "Healthcare spending in England as a whole this year is being cut very slightly in real terms because of inflationary pressures.

"Ultimately hospital budgets are a political choice - this financial year there seems to be a political consensus from both of the main parties that the NHS is not due significant extra levels of funding."