McKinsey called in to review NHS Test and Trace governance amid leadership churn

The move comes as nearly all the programme’s top executives prepare to to depart in coming weeks — leaving the embattled unit urgently needing to fill several key posts including its first chief executive.

McKinsey has been asked to explore the status and future shape of the organisation, potentially considering whether it should remain as a directly controlled DHSC agency; be given greater operational independence; or be merged into another DHSC arms-length body, such as Public Health England.

Senior figures involved in the programme have expressed the hope that Test and Trace may develop into the kind of agency dedicated to the combatting of pandemic threats widely found in many asian countries. The programme is due to produce a strategy and business plan soon, which is likely to be informed by the McKinsey work. 

With PHE the subject of significant critcism in government circles about the speed of its response to the pandemic, it has been suggested Test and Trace may be given a long-term future role in diagnostics, vaccination and prevention in the health service. 

Senior personnel were brought in to the programme on short contracts in May as the government hurried to set up a viable test and trace system.

The departing executives include Tony Prestedge, Test and Trace’s chief operating officer, who is due to become deputy chief executive of Santander UK; Tom Riordan was made lead for tracing in May, but is now returning to his role as chief executive of Leeds City Council; and Sarah-Jane Marsh, the “test” programme lead, is returning to her post running Birmingham Women and Children’s Foundation Trust,

The lead of the “enable” programme at Test and Trace; its chief commercial officer; and its chief people officer are also all due to move to other roles in August.

NHS T&T executive chair Baroness Harding is also a temporary appointment. Her post has no fixed end date, but she is expected to return to her job as chair of NHS Improvement in the autumn.

HSJ understands NHS T&T and the Department of Health and Social Care are searching for a substantive chief executive for the unit — a role it has not so far had — and other top-level executive posts, on two-year contracts, although adverts have not yet been published.

One source close to the programme said the lack of organisational stability made the job harder for its staff and the many people working under its banner locally.

A DHSC spokeswoman told HSJ: “The NHS Test and Trace senior leadership team were rightly recruited at pace to allow us to rapidly scale-up and we will update on any personnel changes at the appropriate time. Over 12 million tests have been delivered so far and we’ve already helped stop more than 144,000 close contacts from unknowingly spreading the virus.”

Baroness Harding told MPs in June would not be fully operational until September. She also told a Lords committee earlier this month that a crucial component of the overall system – back-tracing – was currently being piloted in Leicester. This helps public health officials determine the source of outbreaks as well as where people currently infected may be spreading the disease onwards.