Meet the north west GP Support Team

Health Education England in the north west is supported by the GP Support Team which is split over three different areas. The team consists of the GP Specialty Training School, the Primary Care School, and the International Medical Graduates /Differential Attainment Team.

Can you explain what the purpose of your team is?

Colleagues who make up the GP Support Team are split between Regatta Place in Liverpool and PP3 in Manchester. We exist to grow the future primary care workforce, develop multi-professional supervisors, and monitor the experience that learners receive, ultimately leading to improved patient care. Within the GP School, our 22 training programmes cover the north west. This includes around 2,000 trainees and their approximate 900 educational and clinical supervisors (trainers). The International Medical Graduate Support and Differential Attainment Team helps to ensure all colleagues are supported effectively through training. The Primary Care School provides post-CCT courses and initiatives for GPs in addition to overseeing training hub performance and delivery, and quality assurance processes.

What are your priority areas of work?

Our priorities are as follows:

• Delivering the expansion of the numbers of GPs in training and the necessary placements and supervisors to meet this increase
• Managing the structural change in GP training to 12 months secondary, 24 months GP and other GP training reform initiatives
• Quality assurance of the training experience of GP trainees
• Accrediting and developing GP educators and trainers
• Implementing a unified multi-professional approval process for primary care learning environments
• Quality management of primary care supervisors and learning environments
• Supporting the increasing number of international medical graduates entering GP training
• Working with NHS England and system colleagues to improve the retention of GPs within the workforce

How do you work across the north west region?

To deliver the best possible service to our GP doctors in training, educators and supervisors, we liaise with a wide range of stakeholders. This includes GP doctors in training, GP trainers, GP specialty training programme teams, NHS trusts, GP practices, colleagues in HEE, the Royal College of General Practice, training hubs, primary care networks, NHS England, ICB facing teams, primary care workforce colleagues at NHS England, differential attainment champions and lead employer.

What can you help with?

We can help you with GP trainee management and support, GP trainee placement information, GP educator development, GP trainer approval, re-accreditation, and records, organising events and courses, links to primary care training hubs and NHS England workforce teams, GP retention initiatives and primary care quality processes.

What is the best way to contact the team?  

You can visit our website for overall information about what we do as a team. Since we are a large team across the north west the best way to contact us is through the different schools.

• For Trainee management and support, educator development or finance information email us at gptraining.nw@hee.nhs.uk
• For the Primary Care School and Post-CCT Initiatives email us at primarycareschool.nw@hee.nhs.uk
• For the International Medical Graduate Support and Differential Attainment email us at gpsupport.nw@hee.nhs.uk