Practices will need to be able to report on achieving the metrics for the scheme if they are claiming the reimbursements, therefore if claiming but not delivering (due to utilising the money elsewhere) could be difficult to justify if requested.
Elements of the PCN DES can be sub-contracted via a federation BUT will need ICB approval. All sub-contracts require ICB sign off.
Payment will be made via Local CQRS systems. This will be made available to each practice who will be given access to process their claims via the ICB.
In terms of evidencing, this should be kept simple. A short-written statement from the practice confirming the recruitment decision was influenced by the additional funding should be sufficient, if evidence is required. If needed, you can briefly reference timing and affordability, but a straightforward statement will usually meet the requirement.
This is an annual programme until the 31 March 2027. If an eligible Doctor is employed part year there should be no reason why this couldn’t be claim accordingly.
Practices should act cautiously if agreeing employment terms after this date (if reliant on this funding allocation).
11) A contractor may transfer all or part of its funding entitlement under this Scheme to another practice that is a Core Network Member of the same PCN as a contractor, for the purpose of (3)(c), by confirming in writing to NHS England.
The LMC has requested the ICB to outline the process and rules of gifting the money to member practices in their PCN. We await a response on the process and what evidence and/or approval will be needed.
Example
Practice currently has:
- Approximately 18,000 patients
- Two GP partners
- Three salaried GPs
This puts the patient-to-GP ratio above the 3,500 threshold referenced in the guidance.
Answer
The reimbursement states that if you have more than 1 GP per 3500 patients you need to seek approval for this funding.
The LMC has requested the ICB outlines the process and rules of obtaining approval where the patient-GP ratio is above the threshold and how this is calculated. i.e., whethr this is WTE, headcount or numbers of sessions. We await a response on the process and what evidence and/or approval will be needed.
As outlined on our LMC resource page, the national CAP funding has now moved into this scheme, and Section 3(c) allows for the continuation of salaried GP employment previously funded via CAP.
Given that this funding is effectively being rolled over rather than representing new recruitment. If GPs meet the criteria within the programme, additional approval should not be necessary.
The amount the contractor may claim for the cost of the salary of the GP and employer’s contribution for national insurance and pension, during the claim period, is the lower of:
- the actual cost incurred by the contractor; and
- the maximum sum of £152,900 and (or £155,698 where London weighting applies).
Each practice has an allocation of £4.57 multiplied by the practices adjusted population during the 2026/27 financial year. Colleagues should note this population metric is neither the raw list size, nor the practices weighted list size after the application of the Carr-Hill formula. The adjusted population metric is used for most PCN funding allocations.
No. The claims should not be duplicated and therefore either the reimbursement is being processed under the ARRS scheme OR the GP reimbursement scheme.
Duplicated claims for the same person should not be processed.