MORE than 10 per cent of jobs were vacant at Warrington Hospital last year, new figures show.

Data released by NHS England shows that one-in-eight jobs were left unfilled in Warrington Hospital as of December 2022 - equal to around 12 per cent.

This was a slight increase on March 2022, when the figure stood at 10.7 per cent.

Warrington Guardian: 12.5 per cent of jobs at the hospital were vacant by the end of last year12.5 per cent of jobs at the hospital were vacant by the end of last year (Image: Newsquest)

Vacancies do not mean that these jobs are not being carried out, but that the additional duties are being carried out by current or temporary staff.

Increasing vacancies means more work must be carried out by current staff, which is one of the contributing factors to recent junior doctor strike action, some unions are saying.

It was reported last month that junior doctors make up almost half of all medics at Warrington Hospital.

General secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, Pat Cullen, said: "Recruiting and retaining nursing staff in the NHS has become a serious challenge on the back of over a decade of pay cuts."

She said a lack of staff was impacting the quality of care they can provide to patients.

The union boss added: "Until we begin to turn the tide and fill these vacant posts, the NHS will not be able to tackle the backlog in care."

Caroline Waterfield, director of development and employment at NHS Employers – part of the NHS confederation – said: "We know that the NHS is not immune to the challenges facing the rest of the UK economy in terms of a very competitive labour market.

"Not only has it been very tricky to attract the right number of suitable candidates into some roles, we’ve also seen higher levels of turnover as colleagues move jobs within the health and social care sector and into other industries."

Warrington Guardian: Working conditions and retention rates have been a theme of recent strike action taken by junior doctors in WarringtonWorking conditions and retention rates have been a theme of recent strike action taken by junior doctors in Warrington (Image: Newsquest)

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: "There are record numbers of staff working in the NHS, with over 51,500 more people compared to a year ago – including over 5,300 more doctors and over 12,300 more nurses.

"We want to build on this progress and will publish a workforce plan shortly to ensure that we have the right numbers of staff, with the right skills to transform and deliver high-quality services fit for the future."