New diversity targets for NHS tech and data staff

NHS Digital has made a new commitment for its staff to have the same diversity at all levels of the organisation.

Pledging to increase its diversity by 2025, NHS Digital has been at the heart of the digital response to the pandemic from setting up the Shielded Patient List to running the online systems for booking and recording the coronavirus vaccine.

Around one in five NHS employees are Black, Asian or from minority ethnic groups and NHS Digital has made a new commitment for its staff to have the same diversity at all levels of the organisation. NHS Digital is striving for 19 per cent of its staff to be Black, Asian or from minority ethnic groups, 14 per cent to be disabled, and 50 per cent to be female by 2025.

Simon Bolton, interim chief executive at NHS Digital, said: “Setting workforce representation targets is a symbol of our, and my personal, serious intent to make a difference. It certainly is not a quick fix; however it is a visible and public acknowledgement of our current position and acceptance to be held to account.

“It signals our commitment to work much harder to retain and develop our existing diverse talent and to do things differently to engage and attract colleagues from all backgrounds. This is particularly important in our senior leadership roles where we know we need to do better.

“Having a more diverse workforce is only part of the solution, and we need to work to make NHS Digital a truly inclusive environment. This starts with strong leadership and I am unapologetic in setting these expectations of the leadership community in NHS Digital, my executive team and myself as CEO. We are focused on building a workforce that better represents our customers, health and care staff and the communities we serve. We know that this will help us to develop and deliver better products and services, and ultimately enable improved healthcare outcomes.”