Almost 2,000 GPs recruited through ARRS

Almost 2,000 GPs have now been recruited through the Additional Roles Reimbursement Scheme (ARRS), according to latest data released by NHS England.

It comes as some practice pharmacists have been feeling ‘unsettled’ amid reports that GP practices in England are considering replacing non-GP ARRS staff – which includes pharmacists – with GPs.

According to data published this week, a total of 1,959 (headcount) GPs have been recruited as of 31 May 2025 via the scheme, which was initially intended to hire an extra 1,000 across primary care networks (PCNs) in England.

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The confirmed full-time equivalent (FTE) figure for April is 866.6 GPs. The confirmed FTE figure for May is not yet complete due to the delay between claims for payment and data extraction.

There are now 383 (headcount) GPs employed through ARRS in the Midlands, 339 (headcount) in London and 331 (headcount) in the North West.

Changes to the GP contract for 2024/25 saw the previously ringfenced ARRS funding for GPs combined into the pot with all other roles, meaning PCNs are no longer capped on how many newly registered GPs they can recruit within the boundaries of the ARRS.

General practice nurses – both new and experienced – were also added to the list of roles that PCNs can employ under the ARRS.

A recent survey carried out by our sister titles Pulse and Management in Practice, found that more than a third (37%) of GP practices in England are considering or have already started replacing non-GP ARRS staff with GPs.

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President of the Primary Care Pharmacy Association (PCPA) Dr Graham Stretch said previously that the situation was ‘unsettling’ for pharmacists employed under the ARRS, and encouraged peers to be ‘as visible and as effective in practice as possible’ to help protect their roles.

While practices pharmacists continue to be a popular role for PCNs through the ARRS, it seems recruitment has slowed recently.

NHS England separately published monthly primary care network workforce statistics last week that look at a different set of data, the National Workforce Reporting Service (NWRS). This suggested that 5,437 pharmacists were employed across PCNs, both through the ARRS and the extended access DES.

This data also suggested there were 474 FTE GPs employed across PCNs, through the ARRS and the extended access DES.

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Almost £20m of ARRS funding was unspent by PCNs in 2024/25, according to an exclusive investigation by our sister title Pulse PCN published last month. Several integrated care boards blamed the ARRS GP scheme for their underspend.

This article was first published by our sister title Pulse PCN