Skip to main content

HEIW develops future focused Workforce Plans to strengthen NHS Wales

Published 25/7/2025

 

As part of their Integrated Medium-Term Plan 2025–26, Health Education and Improvement Wales (HEIW) has announced 8 strategic priorities to develop a highly skilled and sustainable workforce, ensuring improved care and better health outcomes for the people of Wales.

Strategic Priority 7: Future Focussed Workforce Plans is a comprehensive and forward-thinking programme designed to ensure that NHS Wales has a workforce that is not only fit for today’s needs, but ready for the future.

From the outset, HEIW was created to lead a strategic and coordinated approach to workforce development across NHS Wales, and this priority delivers on that core purpose. It focuses on developing and delivering workforce plans that are aligned with the overarching Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care, whilst also being tailored to the specific needs of individual professions and services.

Workforce plans, for Mental Health Services, Primary Care Services, and Genomics as well as Nursing, Pharmacy and Dental professional groups, have already begun to transform how we approach some of the most pressing national workforce challenges; recognising them not just as operational issues, but as critical, strategic priorities essential to the long-term success and sustainability of health and care services. Most recently we have completed and are starting to implement the Perinatal Workforce Plan which takes a multi professional approach focused on improving quality and safety across maternity and neonatal services.

 In addition, HEIW will:  

  • Continue developing a Workforce Observatory to deliver timely insights into workforce trends and supporting real-time responses to workforce challenges.
  • Improve access to high-quality workforce data, enabling faster and more informed decisions that benefit patients.
  • Establish a Centre for Workforce Intelligence to support smart, evidence-based planning that strengthens service delivery.
  • Continue implementing key actions from all our workforce plans ensuring services reflect the needs of modern Wales.

Helen Watkins, Director of Workforce and Organisational Development said,

“From shorter waiting times to better continuity of care, workforce planning isn’t just a behind-the-scenes task – it’s a direct investment in patient experience, service resilience, and staff wellbeing.

“Through Strategic Priority 7, we’re building a future-ready NHS Wales workforce with tailored, evidence-based plans grounded in the national Workforce Strategy and designed to meet the specific needs of key services and professions – all of which have a profound impact on the health of our communities.”

For further information please see our Integrated Medium Term Plan (IMTP) or contact heiw@wales.nhs.uk.