The National Programmes were initially allocated across the Lead Employers as detailed below, however following feedback on these arrangements, the trainees on these programmes were transferred to NES employment on the 5th February 2020. Further information is available here. 

In August 2018 we moved from 22 Health Board employers to just 4 lead employers for doctors and dentists in training:

• NHS Grampian for the North region
• NHS Lothian for the East region
• NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde for the West region, and
• NHS Education for Scotland (NES).

NES became the sole employer for all GP trainees, with the 3 other lead employers covering the other specialties and foundation trainees on a regional basis.

The programmes are allocated across the lead employers as follows:

North Regional programmes – Grampian

Acute Care Common Stem - Acute Medicine (East/North programmes)

Acute Care Common Stem - Anaesthetics (East/ North programmes)

Acute Care Common Stem - Emergency medicine (East/ North programmes)

Acute Internal Medicine (East/North Programmes)

Anaesthetics – (East/North programmes)

Cardiology (East/North programmes)

Clinical radiology (East/North programmes)

Core Anaesthetics (East programme)

Core Anaesthetics Training (North programme)

Core Medical Training (East/North programmes)

Core Psychiatry (East/North programmes)

Dermatology (East/North programmes)

Emergency medicine (run through) – East/North programmes

Emergency medicine (East/North programmes)

Endocrinology and diabetes mellitus (East/North programmes)

Gastroenterology (East/North programmes)

General (internal) medicine (East/North programmes)

General psychiatry – East programme

General surgery (East/North programme)

Geriatric medicine (East/North programmes)

General Obstetrics and gynaecology – East programme

Haematology (East/North programmes)

Histopathology (East/North programmes)

Intensive care medicine (East/North programmes)

Intensive Care Medicine - Single (East/North programmes)

Internal Medicine Training (East/North programmes)

Obstetrics and gynaecology – North programme

Ophthalmology – East programme

Ophthalmology – North psychiatry programme

Paediatrics (East/North programme)

Renal medicine (East/North programmes)

Respiratory medicine (East/North programmes)

Rheumatology (East/North programmes)

Trauma and orthopaedic surgery (East/North programmes

Urology (Run Through) - East of Scotland programme

East regional programmes- Lothian

Acute Care Common Stem - Acute Medicine South East of Scotland

Acute Internal Medicine - South East

Acute Care Common Stem - Anaesthetics South East of Scotland

Acute Care Common Stem - Emergency Medicine South East of Scotland

Anaesthetics - South East

Cardiology - South East

Clinical radiology - South East

Core Anaesthetics Training South-East of Scotland

Core Medical Training South-East of Scotland

Core Psychiatry Training South-East of Scotland

Dermatology - South East

Emergency medicine - South East

Emergency medicine (run through) - South East

Endocrinology and diabetes mellitus - South East

Intensive care medicine - South East

Intensive Care Medicine Single - South East

Gastroenterology - South East

Geriatric medicine - South East

General psychiatry - South East

General surgery - South East

Haematology - South East

Histopathology - South East

Internal Medicine Training - South East

Obstetrics and gynaecology - South East

Ophthalmology - South East

Paediatrics - South East

Renal medicine - South East

Respiratory medicine - South East

Rheumatology - South East

Trauma and orthopaedic surgery - South East

Vascular Surgery (Run Through)

West regional programmes - GGC

Acute Care Common Stem - Acute Medicine West of Scotland

Acute Care Common Stem - Anaesthetics - West

Acute Care Common Stem - Emergency Medicine - West

Acute Internal Medicine - West

Anaesthetics - West

Cardiology – West

Clinical radiology – West

Core Anaesthetics Training West of Scotland

All Core Medical Training West of Scotland programmes

Core Psychiatry Training West 1

Core Psychiatry Training West 2

Core Surgical Training - West

Dermatology - West

Emergency Medicine - West

Emergency medicine (run through) - West

Endocrinology and diabetes mellitus - West

Gastroenterology - West

General (internal) medicine - West

Geriatric medicine - West

General psychiatry - West

General surgery – West

Haematology- West

Histopathology - West

Intensive care medicine – West

All Internal Medicine Training – West programmes

Medical Microbiology - West of Scotland

Obstetrics and gynaecology - West South

Ophthalmology - West

Otolaryngology – West Trauma and orthopaedic surgery - West

Paediatrics - West

Renal medicine - West

Respiratory medicine - West

Rheumatology - West

Urology - West of Scotland

All National & Cross-regional programmes - NES

Broad Based Training

Cardio-thoracic Surgery (all)

Chemical Pathology (All Scotland)

Child and Adolescent Psychiatry - National

Clinical Genetics

Clinical Neurophysiology (All Scotland)

Clinical Oncology

Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics

Community and Sexual and Reproductive Health

Core Surgical Training

Diagnostic Neuropathology

Forensic Histopathology

Forensic Psychiatry

Genito-urinary Medicine

Infectious Diseases (All Scotland)

Intellectual Disability Psychiatry - National

Medical Oncology

Medical Ophthalmology – National

Medical Psychotherapy

Medical Virology

Neurosurgery - National

Neurology

Occupational Medicine

Old Age Psychiatry - National

Oral and Maxillo-facial Surgery

Paediatric Cardiology

Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology

Paediatric Surgery

Palliative Medicine - West

Plastic Surgery

Public Health

Rehabilitation Medicine

Vascular Surgery

The other Boards continue to host trainees on placement as part of the training programme and are known as ‘placement Boards’. Whilst the employing Boards have employment responsibilities, the placement Boards continue to have clinical governance responsibility for those engaged in providing clinical care to placement Board patients.

The lead employer arrangements were implemented in August 2018.

The lead employer arrangements were implemented to cut red tape and improve the working experience for junior Doctors and Dentists.

Prior to the new arrangements, each time a trainee moved from one health board to another, they had to change employer. This was time-consuming and caused problems for things like mortgages, tax codes, access to employee service based entitlements (e.g. cycle to work, childcare vouchers).

The lead employer arrangements were being implemented across NHS Scotland.

The lead employer arrangements were implemented on behalf of Scottish Government by the Scottish Health Boards working in partnership with the BMA and BDA.

The lead employers will be the employer for the duration of the training programme. The national programmes were initially allocated across the lead employers as detailed below, however following feedback on these arrangements, all trainees on national/ cross regional programmes were transferred to NES as their employer as of the 5th February 2020. Further information is available here. 

The lead employers will be the employer for the duration of the training programme. They are:

NHS Grampian for all foundation, core and specialty trainees (excluding GPSTs):

• In the North Region of Scotland, this encompasses NHS Highland, NHS Orkney, NHS Shetland, NHS Western Isles, NHS Tayside and NHS Grampian.
• On the following East/ North regional programmes:
  • Urology
  • ENT
  • East Medical Microbiology.

NHS Lothian - for all foundation, core and specialty trainees (excluding GPSTs):

• In the East Region of Scotland, this encompasses NHS Borders, NHS Fife and NHS Lothian.

NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde - for all foundation, core and specialty trainees (excluding GPSTs):

• In the West Region of Scotland, this encompasses NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Dumfries and Galloway, NHS Forth Valley, NHS Lanarkshire, Golden Jubilee National Hospital, State Hospital and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

NHS Education for Scotland - for all trainees on:

• General Practice Specialty Training programmes
  • This includes all trainees on placements in General Practices and in hospital placements in NHS Highland, NHS Orkney, NHS Shetland, NHS Western Isles, NHS Tayside, NHS Grampian, NHS Borders, NHS Fife, NHS Lothian, NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Dumfries and Galloway, NHS Forth Valley, NHS Lanarkshire and NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

• In addition to this, the following national programmes:
  • Broad Based Training
  • Cardio-thoracic Surgery
  • Cardio-thoracic surgery (run through)
  • Chemical Pathology 
  • Child and Adolescent Psychiatry - National
  • Clinical Genetics
  • Clinical Neurophysiology (All Scotland)
  • Clinical Oncology
  • Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
  • Combined Infection Training
  • Community and Sexual and Reproductive Health
  • Core Surgical Training - East of Scotland
  • Diagnostic Neuropathology
  • Forensic Histopathology
  • Forensic Psychiatry
  • Genito-urinary Medicine
  • Immunology
  • Infectious Diseases
  • Intellectual Disability Psychiatry - National
  • Medical Microbiology - East of Scotland
  • Medical Oncology
  • Medical Ophthalmology – National
  • Medical Psychotherapy
  • Medical Virology
  • Neurology
  • Neurosurgery - National
  • Nuclear Medicine
  • Occupational Medicine (All Scotland)
  • Old Age Psychiatry - National
  • Oral and Maxillo-facial Surgery
  • Otolaryngology - East
  • Paediatric Cardiology
  • Paediatric and Perinatal Pathology
  • Paediatric Surgery
  • Palliative Medicine - West
  • Plastic Surgery
  • Public Health
  • Rehabilitation Medicine
  • Urology - East of Scotland
  • Vascular Surgery

A lead employer is the NHS Board that will hold the contract of employment and deliver the payroll function for a trainee for the duration of the programme of training. The trainee may be on placement in a different placement Board but the contract of employment and payroll will remain with the employing Board.

A placement Board is the Party providing a training placement to the Doctor/Dentist in Training (who is not their employer).

An Employment Responsibilities Agreement was agreed by all 22 Health Boards. This Agreement sets out the roles and responsibilities of employing Boards, placement Boards and NES in the employment of Doctors and Dentists in Training.

An application was developed, Turas People, to assist in the information flows between the Scotland Deanery (NES), the trainee, placement Boards and employing Boards. The key function of Turas People is to reduce duplication of information for all parties.

Apart from streamlined processes in relation to pre-employment etc most doctors should not notice any change. For those with disabilities, or support needs, it should be easier rotating to a new Placement as their record should stay with them rather than have to be actively transferred. As now, NES will continue to sponsor Skilled Worker Visas. Doctors and Dentists in Training will be recruited in the same way, with unified paperwork and aligned policies across Boards.

Policies are being reviewed across the Boards to develop consistency in application and processes. In the first instance, the lead employer policies will form part of the contract of employment.

In August 2018 we moved from 22 Health Board employers to just 4 lead employers for doctors and dentists in training:

• NHS Grampian for the North region
• NHS Lothian for the East region
• NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde for the West region, and
• NHS Education for Scotland (NES).

The programmes are allocated across the Lead Employers as follows:

Dental Core Training

Dental Specialty Training