ESR & Job Planning Software Interface
Background
Research undertaken by NHS England (NHSE) has identified significant misalignment -typically 5-15% - between consultant and SAS doctor job plans and the pay they receive. For a single NHS organisation, this represents an estimated £100k of over- or under-payments. Trusts also report persistent challenges reconciling job planning outputs with ESR employee records, including applying the correct inclusion and exclusion criteria.
Following consultation with a supplier reference group and the national provider job planning forum, NHSE engaged with NHSBSA ESR team and asked for a solution that would address these two main factors:
- ESR job planning forms required updates to reflect previously agreed data changes.
- There was no mechanism to transfer job plan data from external job planning systems into ESR.
Purpose of the Interface
Many NHS organisations use third-party software to record job plans. Currently, this information must be re-entered into ESR manually - an approach that increases workload, can introduce errors and limits visibility of system-wide clinical capacity.
To address this, NHSE, NHSBSA ESR and third-party suppliers have co-designed a new Application Programming Interface (API) that automatically transfers job planning data from external systems into ESR.
The interface:
- Eliminates manual transcription
- Improves data completeness and accuracy
- Populates the updated ESR job planning form
- Enables reporting in ESR BI
While the API does not automate the pay process, it will flag discrepancies between job plan data and pay information, allowing timely correction.
An image of the updated form and data fields is included below.
Job Plans - form and updated data fields
What Problems Does the Interface Solve?
Engagement with NHS Trusts highlighted widespread demand for automated data transfer. The absence of integration has led to:
- Increased administrative burden
- Localised job planning data
- Avoidable pay errors
- Limited visibility of clinical capacity across systems
Different suppliers use varied data structures and job planning terminology. The API provides a standardised data format, enabling:
- System-level demand and capacity planning
- More effective deployment of clinical workforce
- Benchmarking across organisations and services
- Consistent, reliable reporting
This supports a more strategic approach to workforce deployment and strengthens the alignment between job planning, activity and capacity.
Anticipated Benefits
- Reduction in pay errors caused by misaligned or incomplete job plan data
- Lower administrative workload associated with reconciliation processes
- Improved visibility of workforce capacity across ICS boundaries
- Enhanced benchmarking through the Model Health System
- Automated national reporting, driving improvements in data quality
Availability
The API became available for implementation in September 2025. A phased roll out is supporting organisations to adopt the interface, with:
- NHSE support where required
- Supplier engagement
- A trust feedback forum to share learning and inform future updates
Resource Requirements
NHS England is funding the pilot phase until 31 March 2026. No ongoing commitment is required during this phase.
Longer-term, organisations should anticipate an annual maintenance fee, in line with other integration services that incur a charge.
Implementation is likely to highlight both over- and under-payments and may prompt a review of local job planning processes and budgetary controls. Many organisations may wish to combine interface adoption with a quality review of job plans and strengthened payroll reconciliation processes.
How to Apply
Once your organisation has secured the necessary internal approval (potentially, Medical Director, HR, Finance) and agreed with your chosen job planning system supplier, please raise an ESR Service Request to begin implementation.
Further information is available on the ESR Hub, including:
These resources provide a detailed overview of the interface, data fields and implementation workflow.