Several clinical commissioning groups which are subject to NHS England legal directions spent hundreds of thousands of pounds each on interim executives and directors last year.
CCGs put in directions are often required by the national body to appoint turnaround directors, and/or to have other executive appointments approved by NHS England.
Some CCGs have to work with NHS England when making senior management appointments
Figures collected by HSJ suggest that this approach is leading to groups appointing directors quickly to difficult jobs – usually interims through agencies or personal service companies at high pay rates.
NHS England said: “It is for individual CCGs to determine the most appropriate use of interim appointments to these leadership roles.” However,HSJ has been told that for at least one CCG – Surrey Downs – an NHS England representative sat on interview panels for very highly paid interims.
Surrey Downs CCG, which was put in directions in August 2015, employed an interim director of turnaround from October as a condition of its directions. Anthony Collins cost £195,000 for six months in post in 2015-16.
Full story in the HSJ 28 June 2016