Responding to the latest staff sickness absence figures, published by NHS England and NHS Improvement, the deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, Saffron Cordery said:

"We are pleased to see that overall staff absences due to sickness of self-isolation have reduced again this month, with COVID-19 related absences falling by 40%.

"This reflects the success of the vaccination campaign so far, with more staff receiving the jab, and the ongoing impact of the lockdown.

"But we know that staff burnout is a real worry after such a difficult year. With the latest performance data showing NHS activity returning to pre-pandemic levels, and a growing waiting list, it's really important that we protect staff from unmanageable workloads.

"Trusts are doing a lot to support the health and wellbeing of staff, and working with local partners to fill immediate gaps, but in the long term the NHS needs a fully costed and funded national workforce plan to ensure that flexibility is built into the system."