Changes to BSW Bank arrangements - Member meeting
01 Jul 2026, 11:30 - 12:30
Choose event information:
If you undertake bank shifts at Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, or might in the future this information affects you.
In March 2026, the BSW Hospitals Group Joint Committee approved the outsourcing of the NHS bank staffing function across three trusts — Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust — to Pulse (Bank Partners), part of the Acacium Group. The new arrangement is due to start on 1 August 2026.RUH staff side – Vice Chair Steve Dunne-Howells, RCN Lead rep - have been particularly proactive in challenging this decision. Their position is that the decision:
- removes a significant workforce group from NHS employment
- transfers a core NHS staffing function to a private, profit-driven provider
- reduces nationally agreed NHS terms and conditions, particularly pensions
- was taken despite formal collective opposition from recognised trade unions
This decision by the trust means that from 1 August 2026:
- NHS bank workers will cease to be part of the NHS workforce
- workers must re-register with Pulse/Acacium to continue working
- NHS employment status, continuity of service, and access to NHS frameworks will be lost. This is not a transfer within the NHS, it is the ending of NHS employment for this workforce group. TUPE protections do not apply to zero-hours bank arrangements
- NHS employer pension contribution at 23.7% will cease for those classes as workers. The proposed alternative is an approximate 6% employer pension contribution.
This decision will impact many employees including RCN members across all three trusts.
It's important you understand how this affects you, your colleagues and the nursing profession. To discuss further please come to our meeting.
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For more information please contact the RCN Senior Regional Officer for Wiltshire.
Chris Ashworth
Christopher.Ashworth@rcn.org.uk
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Page last updated - 08/06/2026
