Almost 2,000 GPs recruited through ARRS

Almost 2,000 GPs have now been recruited through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS), according to latest data released by NHS England.

It comes after a survey suggested more than a third of GP practices in England were considering or have already started replacing non-GP ARRS staff – which includes nursing staff – with GPs.

According to data published this week, a total of 1,959 (headcount) GPs have been recruited as of 31 May 2025 via the scheme, which was initially intended to hire an extra 1,000 across primary care networks (PCNs) in England.

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The confirmed full-time equivalent (FTE) figure for April is 866.6 GPs. The confirmed FTE figure for May is not yet complete due to the delay between claims for payment and data extraction.

There are now 383 (headcount) GPs employed through ARRS in the Midlands, 339 (headcount) in London and 331 (headcount) in the North West.

Changes to the GP contract for 2024/25 saw the previously ringfenced ARRS funding for GPs combined into the pot with all other roles, meaning PCNs are no longer capped on how many newly registered GPs they can recruit within the boundaries of the ARRS.

General practice nurses – both new and experienced – were also added to the list of roles that PCNs can employ under the ARRS but there is not yet data available on this.

In a recent survey carried out by our sister titles Pulse and Management in Practice in April, GP partners and practice managers across 501 GP practices were asked whether their PCN was considering replacing non-GP ARRS staff with GPs.

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Some 24% of respondents said they had ‘discussed’ this, while 8% said they had ‘started taking action to do so’. A further 5% said they had ‘done so already’.

Responding to the survey findings in June, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said it continued to have ‘reservations’ about the ARRS and that any staffing changes must not come ‘at the expense of nursing roles’.

NHS England separately published monthly primary care network workforce statistics last week that look at a different set of data, the National Workforce Reporting Service (NWRS). This data suggested there were 474 FTE GPs employed across PCNs, through the ARRS and the extended access DES.

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A special investigative series by Nursing in Practice recently explored the negative impact the ARRS scheme has had on the practice nursing workforce since its introduction.

A version of this article was first published by our sister title Pulse PCN