Health Minister Mike Nesbitt has announced a significant package of investment aimed at bolstering Northern Ireland’s Health and Social Care (HSC) workforce, with a key focus on expanding student training places, particularly for future Allied Health Professionals (AHPs).

The announcement is a core component of the Department of Health’s three-year plan designed to stabilise, reform, and deliver a more sustainable and effective healthcare system for everyone.

For the 2025/26 academic year, the Department will commission a record 505 pre-registration training places for Allied Health Professionals (AHPs), alongside 1065 places for Nursing and Midwifery and 330 for Social Work. This expansion is part of an annual £160 million investment in workforce commissioning across all health and social care professions.

Minister Nesbitt stated: “Our health and social care workforce are our greatest asset. Without their skill and dedication, there is no service. This plan is about stabilising the foundations of our system by investing in the people who will deliver care now and into the future."

The record 505 AHP places for 2025/26 include:

• Physiotherapy – 110

• Radiography (Therapeutic) – 119

• Occupational Therapy – 93

• Paramedics – 65

• Speech and Language Therapy – 56

• Dietetics – 35

• Podiatry – 27

These roles are deemed critical for delivering care across various settings, including hospitals, communities, and homes, and are expected to help free up more experienced staff for advanced practice and leadership roles. “Despite the very real financial pressures we face, I have made it a priority to fund the expansion of our training pipeline over 2025/26 building upon the foundation of the sustained levels of investment over recent years which has delivered growth in the overall Health and Social Care Workforce of over 7000 whole time equivalents in the last 5 years – a 11.2% increase over the period," the Minister added. “This will not only help us meet rising demand but support the transformation of services particularly in primary and community care where AHPs play a vital and growing role."

The Department's three-year strategy is built on three pillars: Stabilisation (addressing immediate pressures like pay, recruitment, and retention), Reform (expanding training capacity, redesigning services, and strengthening multi-disciplinary models), and Delivery (ensuring services meet patient needs with safe staffing, reduced waiting times, and increased access).

Other key workforce developments announced include:

• 378 places on the Northern Ireland Medical Foundation Programme, ensuring a place for all QUB and UU graduates.

• 24 new medical specialty training posts through NIMDTA.

• A pilot Diagnostic Radiographer Apprenticeship.

• Investment to establish a project team for the HSC Medical and Dental Locum Reduction Project.

• Additional one-off cohorts of 100 AHP, 30 Nursing/Midwifery, and 15 Social Work training places.

• Appointment of 5 Social Work Recruitment and Retention Co-ordinators across the HSC Trusts.

Minister Nesbitt concluded: "This strategy is about doing the right thing in the right way — investing in people, expanding access to training, and supporting innovation in service delivery. If we are serious about transformation, we must be serious about workforce planning."

The total cost of the expanded workforce commissioning package is £2.12 million in 2025/26 and £3 million in 2026/27, which the Department confirmed will be met within existing budget baselines.