Future leaders on the fast track

The NHS Leadership Centre is developing a fast-track programme for a small number of managers with a public sector background, in a bid to create a new breed of future NHS leaders.

The programme is likely to be similar to that of the management training scheme but targeted at those with a 'public sector ethos' and some management experience in organisations such as housing associations or local government. There may also be some participants from the private sector.

The scheme would eventually offer up to 100 places a year, though a small-scale pilot programme is expected to be in place by the summer.

NHS chief executive Nigel Crisp said that the proposal would be separate from plans announced by health secretary Alan Milburn this week for a 'register of experts' - an approved list from which managers from private, public and voluntary sectors could be drawn to take over failing trusts.

Mr Crisp told HSJ that the Leadership Centre programme would be for individuals with potential, while 'the register is about identifying organisations or teams of people who would be able to take on management responsibilities in the NHS'.