- Over 2,000 extra GPs have now been hired across the country
after Government action to slash red tape
- Independent survey shows progress on ending the 8am scramble,
with patients finding it easier to contact GP practices
- Plan for Change is shifting care out of hospital and into the
community as Government brings back the family doctor
Millions more GP appointments are now being delivered across the
country and an extra 2,000 GPs have been hired nationwide since
last October, as the Government's Plan for Change brings back the
family doctor.
The average GP is responsible for 2,300 patients, and the new
tranche could deliver over four million additional appointments
per year.
It comes as encouraging new figures from the Office of National
Statistics (ONS) show the number of patients who found it
difficult to contact their practice has fallen significantly from
18.7% in July/ August 2024 to 10.6% in May/ June this year.
96.3% of patients who tried to contact their practice in the past
28 days were successful, while the number of patients who had a
poor experience of their GP practice fell from 15% to 10.9% in
the same period. In May 2025, an extra 12,000 GP appointments
were delivered every working day compared to May 2024.
The recruitment boost – which has already delivered an extra
2,000 GPs - forms part of the Government's Plan for Change, which
is rebuilding the NHS by shifting healthcare out of hospitals
into the community and ending the 8am scramble.
Health and Social Care Secretary said:
“We said we'd deliver 1,000 more GPs this year – and we've
busted that target, bringing 2,000 more GPs on board. With proper
investment and reform we are turning the tide on our NHS, and
patients are beginning to feel the benefit.
“We still have a long road ahead, and this government is
determined to keep our foot on the gas.
“Our Plan for Change will deliver this progress, creating a
Neighbourhood Health Service that puts GPs at its heart and makes
sure the NHS is there for everyone, whenever they need it.”
Last month the government set out its 10 Year Health Plan which
outlines the reforms government is driving forwards to get the
NHS back on its feet and fit for the future. The plan will train
thousands more GPs and create a new Neighbourhood Health Service,
so millions of patients can be treated and cared for closer to
their homes by pioneering teams - some based entirely under one
roof.
When the government came into office last year, unnecessary red
tape was preventing practices from hiring newly qualified GPs,
meaning more than 1,000 were due to graduate into unemployment.
At the same time, there were also 1,399 fewer fully qualified GPs
than a decade prior, with years of underfunding and neglect
eroding GP services.
The government took immediate action and invested an extra £82
million to allow networks of practices to hire GPs, with the
funding continuing past this year.
This recruitment was made possible by the tough but fair
decisions the Chancellor took at the budget to fix the
foundations of the NHS, enabling the government to provide almost
£26 billion to get the NHS back on its feet and make it fit for
the future.
The Plan for Change is already transforming the NHS for patients
and staff. Backed by the government's major cash injection of
over £102 million, over 1,000 GP surgeries will receive over £102
million to create additional space to see more patients and
deliver 8.3 million more appointments each year.
An extra 4.6 million elective appointments have been delivered
since July 2024 - over double the government's target. The
upgraded NHS App will also act as a digital front door to the
health service, overhauling how people get advice, manage
appointments and interact with services to make their healthcare
more convenient and more personalised.
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITORS:
- The ONS figures on general practice can be found here.
