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29
Jan
Harrogate hospital forecasts £21 million deficit
Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust is set to record a deficit of £20.8 million for the financial year.
In its latest board papers, the trust said it is currently running at a deficit of £18 million, which is £15 million behind its planned budget.
Jonathan Coulter, chief executive of Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust, said much of the overspend was caused by ward and medical agency costs, but also “difficulty in managing financial risk across the system”.
Mr Coulter said that the trust's overspend had been revised for the end of the 2025/26 financial year to £20.8 million.
It comes as Mr Coulter previously claimed the organisation was “under-resourced for the work that we do”.
In his latest board report, he said the trust had requested “cash support” due to the latest deficit forecast.
Mr Coulter said:
As a result of our financial position, we have submitted a revised forecast outturn of a deficit of £20.8m.
We have utilised the forecast change protocol, and we are awaiting feedback from the national finance team at NHS England. Alongside this action, we have requested cash support to reflect the deficit forecast for this year.
We are currently awaiting feedback on this application, but as a result we have increased our risk score within the corporate risk register.
Mr Coulter added that the trust was also in “ongoing discussions” with Humber and North Yorkshire Integrated Care Board over its contract to deliver services for next year.
He told a trust board meeting on Wednesday (January 28) that the agreement over the contract was the “route to financial balance sustainability” and it needed to reflect “the demands of services we are providing”.
Mr Coulter said:
The solution to the financial deficit is the planning for next year. That is the way through all of this.
But the immediate issue is that we are working hand to mouth on cash at the moment. That is a consequence of where we are financially. It is even more important that we get next year sorted out.
Mr Coulter has previously warned that Harrogate District Hospital's financial deficit was affecting its position in the new NHS league table.
The trust currently sits 32nd out of 134 acute hospital trusts in the NHS rankings.
As part of the league table, trusts are sorted into four 'segments', the first of which reflects the best performers and the last listing the worst. They are then given an overall score based on the 30 metrics. A lower score denotes a higher-performing trust.
According to the league table, Harrogate has an average score of 1.86 and falls into the third segment of trusts.
However, Mr Coulter said in October last year that the organisation’s financial deficit will mean the trust will struggle to climb the table.
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