NES welcomes Scottish Government plans 

NES welcomes Scottish Government plans 

The Scottish Government today announced a strategy to drive improvement, innovation and cohesive delivery within the health and social care sectors. This is aimed at transforming services, supporting our health and social care workforce and delivering for the people of Scotland.  

It includes bringing together into one ‘centre of excellence’: education and training, digital innovation and change, national services and advice.   

As part of this Service Renewal Framework, NES will come together with our partner NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) to create a new organisation, which will harness the strengths and expertise of all our staff and do more on a ‘once for Scotland’ basis. 

Over the next year, we will work together to create this new body, which will come into force in April 2026. The Scottish Government will also explore whether other workstreams across the NHS could also be included in the new organisation. 

NES Chief Executive Professor Karen Reid said: 

“We have a strong ambition to support better rights-based quality care and outcomes for every person in Scotland. We are developing new ways of working to enhance quality and effectiveness. We are using technology and innovation to improve our education and learning, creating a better and more sustainable future.   

“We welcome this opportunity to shape an ambitious vision for the future. As part of a new, larger organisation, we will be able to harness the talents of a merged NES and NSS workforce to deliver even greater benefits. We look forward to working with NES staff, our partners in NSS and beyond.” 

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