New Starter Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ’s)

After the national recruitment upgrade deadline closes the General Practice National Recruitment Office (GPNRO) provide application details and accepted offer information for new starters to the Wessex GP Programme Team. The GP Programme team will share the information with the relevant Patch Team and the Programme Director will begin planning the ST1 placements.

The Patch is a team local to the training programmes that new starters are allocated to and has Associate Deans, Programme Directors and an Administrative team. In Wessex there are  four Patches that cover the 9 Wessex training programmes. They are:

Portsmouth and Isle of Wight

Southampton, New Forest and Jersey

Mid Wessex – covering Basingstoke, Winchester and Salisbury

Dorset – covering East Dorset (Bournemouth/Poole) and Dorchester

Details of the support they provide, and their contact information can be found on our website.

Within each patch the Programme Directors  are responsible for organising the rotations and work closely with the Patch Administrative Team to plan training placements. They should be the first point of contact regarding any questions or queries relating to placements.

 

The GP Programme team provide the application and placement information to new starters and their lead employers (Trusts) no later than 12 weeks before the expected start date. The lead employer will then start the process of pre-employment checks and drafting employment contracts.

 

The national NHS England Overseas Sponsorship team contact new starters that require a right to work Skilled Worker Permit.

Application packs can be requested via england.sponsorship@nhs.net 

The majority of queries can be answered from the information and FAQs they provide on their website. https://medical.hee.nhs.uk/medical-training-recruitment/medical-specialty-training/overseas-applicants

New starters should be aware that the Sponsorship Team get exceptionally busy in the summer months and there can be long delays responding to individual emails so we would encourage all new starters that require right to work to check the FAQs on the Sponsorship website first.

 

Deferral can only be requested on statutory grounds. Refer to section 3.38 of the Reference Guide for Postgraduate Foundation and Specialty Training in the UK (The Gold Guide 10 edition)

Non-statutory deferment to the start of General Practice training is not permitted.

New starters who have indicated on their Oriel application that they wish to defer are required to contact the GP Education Programme manager and will be expected to complete an application.

 

The Programme Lead Employer (Trust) is responsible for providing the information to confirm salary and can complete references for rental agents and mortgage lenders. Contacts for the Medical Personnel team at the lead employer are on our website.

 

Communications will be sent to you from Trainee Information Self Service (TSS). Once the Conditions of Joining a Training Programme documents have been completed and submitted via TSS we will produce the National Training Number (NTN) that new starters will need to register with the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) as an Associate in Training (AiT).

New starters need to be aware that membership to the RCGP is subject to a fee. The membership fees can be found on the RCGP website – https://www.rcgp.org.uk/join

Once new starters have registered and paid their membership fee, they will then be able to set up their ePortfolio via this link https://www.rcgp.org.uk/membership/ait-trainee

Membership registration should be completed at least 4 weeks before an applicants expected training start date.

The Patch will add the stages of training, placement details and supervisor information to the applicants ePortfolio.

 

In the first few months of training new starters to the Wessex GP Training programme will be expected to attend the following inductions:

Trust induction with their lead employer or a Practice induction if starting in a GP post, which will be done in the first few days of training

Patch Induction in the first month of training

New starters who received their primary medical qualification outside the UK will have an International Medical Graduates (IMG) induction over 2 separate days in the first two months of training

Welcome to Wessex and ST1 Induction event will be within the first 12 weeks of training

Each of these events are mandatory, and applicants will receive separate invitations by the organisers of each event.

New starters to the Wessex GP Training programme are also required to attend the one day Wessex Patient Safety First Training Day. https://wessex.hee.nhs.uk/quality/patient-safety/patient-safety-first-programme/

 

New starters who wish to train LTFT should read the guidance on the Wessex website https://wessex.hee.nhs.uk/trainee-information/trainee-journey/less-than-full-time-training/

and will be required to give the standard notice period https://wessex.hee.nhs.uk/general-practice/gp-training/

 

New starters who have indicated on their Oriel application that they wish to be considered for the Combined Training Pathway will be contacted by the GP Programme Team approximately three weeks before their expected start date. New starters will then be given two weeks to upload their CV to the RCGP ePortfolio (Fourteen Fish).

More information regarding the application and process can be found on the RCGP website: https://www.rcgp.org.uk/training-exams/discover-general-practice/qualifying-as-a-gp-in-the-nhs/combined-training.aspx

 

NHS England works in partnership with Medical Defence Organisations (MDOs) to ensure postgraduate doctors in GP training have comprehensive indemnity arrangements throughout their training.

NHS England Wessex has partnered with The Medical Protection Society (MPS) and GP doctors in training are expected to engage in this process when contacted by MPS or the GP Programme team.

Please access https://wessex.hee.nhs.uk/trainee-information/employment-matters-2/medical-indemnity/ for more information

 

GP Registrars continue to be exempt from inclusion on the NHS England Performers List.

The latest statement from Primary Care Support England (PCSE) can be found on our website https://wessex.hee.nhs.uk/general-practice/gp-training/

Further information can also be found on the PCSE website https://pcse.england.nhs.uk/

 

The Wessex GP Training programme advertises placements in Dorchester, Isle of Wight and Portsmouth that come with TERS funding.

For more information on TERS and the number of placements available in the Wessex locations stated please access the GPNRO website