NHS bank workers report lower levels of burnout but continue to face high levels of physical violence and worsening development opportunities, national survey finds 

A new survey of nearly 19,000 bank only workers in the NHS shows improving burnout measures and greater support from the bank team, although levels of physical violence remain high and career development opportunities are worsening.

The 2025 NHS Staff Survey for bank only workers, which was coordinated by the international and independent charity Picker on behalf of NHS England, provides a comprehensive overview of staff experiences at work, with particular focus on delivery of the NHS England ‘People Promise’.

Improving burnout measures

In a promising sign for efforts to improve the experience of bank only workers, most measures of staff burnout have improved this year. The proportion of bank workers reporting feeling exhausted at the thought of another shift fell to 15% (down from 16% in 2024 and 18% in 2023). There were similar decreases for workers that found their work emotionally exhausting (20%; down from 22% in 2024 and 23% in 2023) and that felt worn out at the end of their shift (29%; down from 30% in 2024 and 32% in 2023).

Support from the bank team

The proportion of bank workers agreeing that they feel supported by the bank team has also improved, with 48% reporting this to be the case (up from 46% in 2024 and 44% in 2023). Bank workers at ambulance trusts have seen notable improvement in this area, with results improving by over 7% points (38%; up from 31% in 2024).

Physical violence from patients

Bank workers’ experiences of physical violence from patients and the public decreased in 2025, but remain high, with 24% reporting at least one incident in the last 12 months (down from 25% in 2024).

Experiences of physical violence varied by ethnic background, with white bank workers less likely to have experienced incidents than bank workers from all other ethnic groups combined (22% compared with 28%). The highest rate was among male workers from all other ethnic groups combined (31%; up from 30% in 2024), while rates were lower for white female bank workers (22%) and white male bank workers (21%), both down compared with 2024.

Fall in learning and career development opportunities

This year’s results show substantial declines in questions asking about learning and career development opportunities. The proportion of bank workers agreeing that there are opportunities for them to develop their career in their organisation has decreased by 5% points, from 46% in 2024 to 41% in 2025.

Similar decreases are seen in other related questions. Fewer bank workers report having opportunities to improve their knowledge and skills (60%; down from 62% in 2024), and fewer feel supported to develop their potential (44%; down from 46% in 2024).

Commenting on the 2025 NHS Staff Survey for bank only workers, Jenny King, Chief Research Officer at Picker, said:

“These results tell us that while the experience of being a bank only worker in the NHS has improved in some areas – namely reduced experiences of burnout – many continue to face high levels of physical violence and declining access to career development opportunities.

“It is important that employers use these results to understand the experience of their bank only workers locally. The survey also highlights inequalities in experience across staff groups, and this data should be used to tailor and co-produce responses to these challenges.

“Staff will be central to the successful delivery of the ambitions of the Ten Year Plan, and so, the eagerly awaited Ten Year Workforce Plan must provide clarity on the blueprint for the NHS workforce over the next decade, building on the Ten Year Plan’s vision to improve staff and patient experience in the health service.” 

ENDS

Notes to editors

• For media enquiries, please contact the Picker Marketing and Communications team at [email protected] or call 01865 632 235.
•  The NHS Staff Survey for bank only workers is coordinated by the Survey Coordination Centre at Picker on behalf of NHS England. Fieldwork for the survey was conducted between September and November 2025.
• Since 2023, all NHS trusts with at least 200 active in-house bank only workers have been required to take part in the bank version of the NHS Staff Survey. Organisations with fewer than 200 eligible bank only workers could also participate on a voluntary basis. This year, 146 organisations participated, including 145 NHS Trusts in England.
• Participating organisations undertook a census of all eligible bank only workers. Overall, 18,904 workers responded to the survey from 113,000 who were invited: a response rate of 17%, down 2% points from 2024.
• National results include data from 18,687 staff at 140 NHS trusts.
• Bank workers were deemed eligible according to the following criteria:

1. Paid by the organisation for any work or training in the past 6 months (as of 1^st September 2025).
2. Work on bank only – without a substantive or fixed term contract at the organisation.
3. Excludes external bank workers, such as those paid or directly supplied by external providers of bank services.

• Bank workers from organisations that participated on a voluntary basis are excluded from the national results, as representative data is not held for these groups.
• Full results for the survey are available from https://www.nhsstaffsurveys.com/results/bank-worker-results/.
• Picker’s team of researchers and data scientists are available to support organisations in understanding, measuring, and using workforce and user experience. For queries about our services or to request a call, please contact [email protected].