The findings of the Aspirant Cancer Career and Education Development (ACCEND) NHS cancer workforce in England survey have recently been published.

The survey was launched to collect information to help inform and support the continued development and implementation of the ACCEND programme, which was established to provide a clear, structured framework for the education, training, and career development of supportive and assistive staff, registered nurses, allied health professionals (AHP), psychologists and pharmacists working in cancer care.

The survey gathered over 2,100 responses offering rich insights into workforce demographics, career aspirations, barriers to progression, and engagement with ACCEND resources.

These findings will inform the next steps supporting implementation, simplifying resources, and strengthening career pathways.

The key findings for the survey are outlined below:

• The majority of the survey’s respondents are employed in secondary care and work in a nursing team. Most are employed full time on a permanent contract, although a third work part time They spend, at least, 75% of their time at work providing direct patient care.
• The vast majority of respondents are white and female, and most are over 41 years of age with a third aged 51 years old or more and 5% planned to retire in the next two years. In contrast just eight percent are aged between16-30 years.
• Participants in the survey have a very positive experience of work. They are twice as likely to feel that they are fairly treated at work than NHS staff as a Almost all (95%) say that they enjoy their work (compared to 68% of NHS staff on average). Almost all respondents also feel that their role makes a difference to patients.
• The majority of survey participants are aware of the Aspirant Cancer Career and Education Development (ACCEND) programme, although awareness is considerably lower amongst the Allied Health Professions. Respondents to the survey who had used the ACCEND resources are positive about them, including those who had used the Career Pathway, Core Cancer Capabilities and Education Framework. However, just one in ten of respondents reported that they had used the Framework.
• Survey respondents are aspirant, loyal and internally mobile. Over two thirds of participants wish to progress their careers to a higher level of practice. Almost none of the survey respondents said that they wished to leave NHS employment or stop working in cancer care. Most respondents have worked in the NHS for more than 16 years but for their current employer for 10 years or less.
• In total 1,031 separate titles were reported in the survey for the workforce. Variation in titles existed within professions, levels of practice and speciality.
• Respondents who work in an Assistive or Supportive level role had limited and uneven access to accredited qualifications, particularly in recent years. Access to apprenticeships was very low (4%) even though over half (53%) of Supportive and Assistive level staff respondents said that would like to study on an apprenticeship. These workers are four times more likely to have completed an ACCEND learning programme than The Care Certificate.

Click here to access the full results and responses

Click here to access nursing responses

Click here to access AHP responses

Click here to access supportive and assistive workforce responses