Doctors currently in training will be supported with £30 million from the government to help address the impact of the pandemic and ensure the NHS has access to the skills it needs to help tackle the backlog.

The funding will be used to support a tailored approach, based on the individual needs of postgraduate trainees, many of whom put their training on hold to work on the frontline. Trainees will benefit from one-to-one training conversations, with recovery plans based on their needs.

Health Education England has been working closely with the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, the General Medical Council, NHS England, NHS Employers and individual college leads to get training back on track.

There are now record numbers of doctors (over 123,800) and nurses (over 303,000) working in the NHS in England, according to the latest figures up to February.

Sheona MacLeod, Deputy Medical Director of Education Reform at HEE, said: “We are aware of the personal impact the Covid -19 pandemic has had on doctors in training, and on their educators, and we have been working with partners to identify how best to enable effective training recovery. This funding will support trusts in the identification of  individualised training needs and in exploring  more tailored ways of enabling trainees to catch up on their competencies. It  will benefit current trainees affected by the pandemic and advance our aims for more flexible individualised training in the future.”