By Foluke Ajayi, Head of NHS Careers and Workforce Supply, NHS Employers

The NHS's greatest asset is its staff. Despite the current financial constraints, it is vital that the NHS continues to retain valuable skills and experience and recruit new staff to replace those leaving or approaching retirement.

Last month (January), in a joint statement, the British Medical Association (BMA) and the Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) called on ministers to restore funding to GP Returner schemes that between 2002 and 2006 helped ease GP shortages by providing at work refresher training to doctors who had taken a career break of more than two years.