NHS hospital vacancy rates, by type of role, March 2018 to June 2025

A line chart from the Institute for Government showing NHS hospital vacancy rates, by type of role, March 2018 to June 2025. Nurse vacancy rates peaked in 2022/23 at 11%, before falling steadily to 6.4% in 2025. Overall hospital vacancy rates have dropped to around 7%, with medical roles lower throughout the period.

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Source: Institute for Government analysis of NHS Digital, ‘NHS vacancy statistics England’ (‘Total 2018 onwards’, ‘Nursing 2018 onwards’ and ‘Medical 2018 onwards’ tables), June 2025.Notes: Figures are a rolling average based on data for the previous 12 months. Figures relate to England. The "Total" line includes staff other than doctors and nurses.Get the dataEmbed Download image