This month’s developments across the NHS feel strangely familiar: major reports, stark findings, bold commitments — and the lingering question of whether anything will genuinely change. For those of us who have spent years in NHS management and primary care, the Covid Inquiry’s Section 5 findings read less like revelations and more like a formal acknowledgement of what the service has been saying for years.

The responses are in, and it’s time to announce the results of the 2025/6 Practice Manager Salary Survey. Our thanks go to the respondents who completed our survey and without whose help we would not be able to provide this insight into salary and how practice managers are feeling.

The Employment Rights Act 2025 introduces a wide range of reforms that will be phased in between 2026 and 2027 and will bring some of the most important updates to UK employment law in recent years. The legislation is designed to improve protections for workers while creating clearer standards for employers.

Following the release of details of the 2026/2027 GP Contract, one recently-retired practice manager correspondent gives their views and feelings on this latest contract and its measures - some well-publicised and others less so.

February has felt like one of those months where the NHS is trying to move forward while dragging a heavy weight behind it. There are sparks of innovation, a few signs of recovery, and then the familiar grind of disputes, underfunding, and people on the ground doing their best in conditions that would exhaust anyone.

January is rarely a quiet month in primary care, but January 2026 has felt particularly intense for many. Between winter viruses, new national programmes, and ongoing workforce pressures, healthcare staff have been juggling high demand with limited capacity. This month’s NHS updates give a good sense of the wider picture — and importantly, what it might mean at practice level.

The prestigious FPM Practice Management Salary Survey is back! It has been a year of change and challenge, and as ever we are keen to keep our finger on the pulse with the latest trends in pay and other areas which affect our practice manager clients.

I’ve had cause recently to use several NHS services — GP appointments, hospital visits, the lot. And one thing really struck me. Many of the doctors and nurses who looked after me were from overseas. I want to be absolutely clear: this isn’t a criticism. In fact, it’s the opposite.

Winter has once again exposed the pressures that sit just beneath the surface of the NHS. Since mid‑December, the familiar combination of flu, Covid, norovirus and cold weather has collided with workforce shortages and industrial action. None of this is unexpected, but this year the impact feels sharper.

The Employments Rights Bill is a new bill proposed by the Labour Government that is currently going through Parliament. The Bill is expected to become law by the end of 2025, which means important law changes are coming.