Meet the team: North West School of Foundation Training and Physician Associates

The North West School of Foundation Training has two broad functions, postgraduate foundation training and supporting Physician Associate healthcare professionals. The north west school is the largest single Foundation School in the United Kingdom and the largest provider of Physician Associate programmes in England.

What does your team do? 

Foundation Training is the first step for newly qualified medical graduates who are starting on their postgraduate journeys. The team support local and allocated graduates through the recruitment process and transition. The Foundation School is broad-based with an increasing emphasis on population health and a medical generalist approach. Graduates complete a two-year programme which runs from August to August, annually, after which they move onto their specialist subject areas. 

The team provide education guidance and governance to regional NHS trust networks of Foundation Programme Administrators who deliver the day-to-day training. The team also support funding streams to facilitate the delivery of Physician Associate programmes.  

The team work directly with Manchester University, University of Liverpool, Lancaster University, University of Central Lancashire, and soon, Edgehill University and the University of Chester.  

What are your priority areas of work?  

The school priority areas are vast, and every task and function is crucial to delivering the wider strategic objectives. The key workstreams include, funding, finance, programme design, Trainee Information System (TIS), Annual Review of Competence (ARCP) and General Medical Council (GMC) Full Registration, management of Trainees Requiring Extra Support (TRES), transfers between schools, time out of programme and study leave. The team also coordinate events, meetings, and conferences for stakeholders.  

Throughout the year the team have key objectives that must be delivered to meet national deadlines, such as the submission of programme information for recruitment and the authorisation for full GMC registration of trainees at the end of foundation one.   

What are your achievements over the past 12 months? 

The team have shown incredible versatility and resilience in dealing with the constantly evolving landscape of both Foundation Training and Physician Associates.  

In the last 12 months the team have seen the biggest ever oversubscription in recruitment which led to a last-minute expansion of posts for the August 2022 intake. The work involved facilitating expansion at local level, on top of business-as-usual requirements was significant.  

The team have spent more time looking at key areas for personal and collective team development. It has long been a team objective to enhance team drive to deliver day-to-day work by spending time building a sense of belonging together and create a supportive environment. The team have a profound level of knowledge and commitment and always go above and beyond.

What is the best way to contact you? 

Further details on the work and objectives of the Foundation Training School can be found here. Contact our team or connect with us via Twitter.