| 3 December 2025
Wales is entering a defining moment in health and social care workforce planning. Services are under sustained pressure, demand is rising, digital transformation is accelerating, and the workforce is more multi-generational and mobile than ever. Yet many organisations are still working with workforce planning processes designed for a more predictable environment – processes that are often strategic, annual, and heavily centred on senior decision-making.
The themes emerging from the recent WelshConfed25 conference made this especially clear: organisations want to build capability, shift toward skills-based planning, and embed workforce planning much closer to where services are delivered. These are the same trends we have been seeing across other parts of the UK, and they point toward a shared direction for Wales.
From roles to skills
Skills-based planning is increasingly seen as essential for a workforce that needs to adapt quickly and confidently. Roles are fixed, but skills evolve – and as services, technologies and expectations change, planning around skills enables organisations to stay ahead rather than constantly react.
Flexibility and resilience: Transferable skills give teams the ability to pivot when services change or pressure increases. Multi-skilled teams can maintain continuity of care even during disruption which is essential in a system facing persistent operational strain.
Future capability: A skills lens helps organisations identify emerging needs sooner: digital confidence, analytical capability, leadership, prevention and community-based care. This visibility supports proactive planning and prepares the workforce for evolving models of care.
Better careers, better retention: Skills-based planning supports more modern, flexible career pathways. ‘Climbing-frame’ careers, where people can move and develop across roles enhance retention, support wellbeing and strengthen long-term workforce sustainability.
Why workforce planning must become ‘always on’
A recurring message is that workforce planning can no longer be a senior-led, annual activity. Services shift too quickly. Digital transformation is reshaping roles, and workforce supply and expectations are constantly changing.
Workforce planning now needs to be an always-on activity, integrated into daily operational practice. For this to work, capability must sit across line managers, service managers and enabling functions (HR, finance, digital, data, organisational development). These are the people closest to service pressures and skill needs. They must have the skills, tools and confidence to carry out workforce planning in practice, identifying needs, anticipating gaps, shaping development and adapting plans as circumstances evolve.
How we can help
At Skills for Health, we support organisations to put skills-based, always-on workforce planning into practice. Through our Six Steps Methodology to Integrated Workforce Planning®, we help teams:
- apply a clear, evidence-based approach
- understand current and future skill needs
- build plans that adapt as services evolve
- embed workforce planning into day-to-day practice.
We offer tailored in-house support and will soon be launching an open training programme for Six Steps to widen access to core workforce planning skills across teams, along with a resilience-focused programme designed to help organisations stress-test and strengthen their workforce plans.