A shock £700,000 bill for key-worker accommodation has helped push Health’s deficit back up to £13 million, Express has learned.
News of the surprise bill was buried in one of two reports on the department’s finances released as part of a 398-page board pack to the Health and Care Services Advisory Board – an independent panel which oversees the running of Health – ahead of its meeting at the end of last week.
An “unanticipated” cost
The report attributed the large “unanticipated” cost to a change of systems during the year.
This, the report said, “resulted in data migration issues and backdated recharges received in December”.
A number of key workers – many of whom work in Health – who come to the island can receive subsidised housing in their first year in Jersey. In their first six months, they pay 80% of market value, increasing to 90% of market value for their seventh- to twelfth- month period.
Overspending continues
The reports also painted a wider picture of the department’s spending.
The department had been predicted to overspend by £12 million in 2025.
The department said they “held close to” this figure throughout 2025, but some extra bills, such as the accommodation charges, drove up their spending at the end of the year.
The department has routinely ended its year with a shortfall over the past few years – reaching a £38 million overspend in 2024.
Back in 2023, the then-Treasury Minister Ian Gorst said Health leaders had been “read the Riot Act” over their ongoing budget failures.
Extra beds – and spaces reserved for private patients
The department also said it spent £2.6 million on opening more beds for general-medicine patients on Bartlett ward.
This was “a high-cost provision”, they admitted, but explained that they prioritised patient flow and there was a shortage of spaces in care homes.
The extra space, they said, would allow them to create “ring-fenced” beds for private patients – and earn back some of the money spent through their fees.
£180K parental leave overspend
Director of Finance & Commercial Hazel Cunningham said in a statement that the department shared a central budget for parental leave, but that how much would be taken from it “depends on individual circumstances and changing demographics”.
“In 2025, more staff were eligible for parental leave and accessed the policy, which created a £180,000 overspend against the budget provision. Such variances reflect normal year‑to‑year fluctuation rather than any issue with the policy or budget management.”
Looking ahead…
In 2026, the department has a budget of £380.96 million, with ambitions to save £9 million – with the biggest savings expected in medical services, surgical services and mental health.
According to a newly-developed financial recovery programme – a successor to a 2023 plan that aimed to save a total of £25 million for the department.
But over the years, those savings have been accompanied by cost increases and losses elsewhere. They were warned again at the end of 2024 that they would have to face “difficult decisions” in 2025 as the target savings were reduced.
The plan to save £9 million in 2026 involves using “bottom-up schemes” created in departments.
They include continuing schemes to make operating theatres more efficient and driving more patients towards private care, through “growth and access” for self-pay, as well as a marketing and communications strategy.
