App will empower 20,000 nurses to choose bank shifts in north west London trusts

Staff can decide when and where to work among four trusts, in a drive to ease winter pressures on NHS

A total of 20,000 nurses across north west London will have greater access to bank shifts under a new agreement.

It is hoped that the North West London Nurses Collaborative Bank, which covers four major NHS trusts, will help plug staffing gaps and reduce agency spend ahead of another busy winter.

Nurses have freedom to book shifts when and where it suits them

Launched this month, the bank covers Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, The Hillingdon Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust.

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Nurses can book shifts via an app, and will also be able to move freely between the trusts using a digital staff passport to share their pre-employment verifications.

Nursing bank aims to ‘protect mental well-being of workforce’ this winter

Claire Gore, director of HR and organisational development at London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust, said the bank will enable a ‘more impactful utilisation’ of nurses’ skills.

‘If London’s hospitals are to tackle the ever-mounting waiting list this winter, they’ll need the support of intelligent, rigorously tested staffing solutions,’ she said.

‘By empowering nursing staff to select their own working hours and location, in a way that never compromises workforce planning, the bank marks another positive step towards protecting the mental well-being of our workforce at this stressful time.’

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