Almost 900 new medical specialty training posts have been created, including 273 in psychiatry, Health Education England has announced today.
The total of 876 posts, which start from August, also includes 270 in cancer-related specialties and will provide an increased supply of doctors when demand is higher than ever.
Last year, 11,207 doctors accepted training programs starting from August this year.
This includes more than 4,000 new trainees this year accepting placements to become a GP.
Professor Wendy Reid, HEE director of education and quality and executive medical director, said: ‘The announcement of additional training posts is excellent news. Training more doctors is positive for patients and demonstrates our commitment to building a sustainable workforce at a crucial time for the NHS.
‘It follows a year where we have continued to hit recruitment targets and attract more people to pursue a career in the NHS. We have seen that the number of doctors keen to join the NHS continues to rise, so it is important that we are able to reflect this with growth in our specialty training programs.’
Health minister Will Quince said: ‘I’m focused on growing the workforce and these extra training places will boost the number of specialist consultants in the areas most in need, such as cancer and mental health, leveling up healthcare across England.
‘An additional 900 training posts will ensure we tackle health disparities across the UK which are preventing people from reaching their full potential and, on top of record numbers of doctors, nurses and staff working in the NHS, we are building a stronger, healthier NHS. for the long-term to give people the security of knowing that it will be there for them when they need it.’
Meanwhile, GPs are being offered thousands of pounds in bonuses to join practices in deprived and under-staffed areas of the South of England.