How much HR does a PCN actually need?

Tara Humphrey
May 25
4 min read

At THC, we provide resources for primary care leaders. In this blog, I want to explore what HR capability actually looks like in a PCN.

I recently had a conversation with Joanne Harding, an HR specialist who has worked across primary care for 22 years, providing the full HR service to practices and PCNs.

We covered a lot of ground in our conversation, but a few things stood out that I think every PCN leader needs to think about.

Text graphic with teal and black background: "HOW MUCH HR DOES A PCN ACTUALLY NEED?" followed by "Job titles, qualifications, and knowing where the limits are."

The HR tipping point

When a practice or a network is small, you can do everything. Finance, HR, CQC, you cover it all.

But some networks now have 30, 40, or 50 people in them. That is when you need to start having structures in place, and that is when you need to start thinking about specialist advice. A specialist finance person. A specialist HR person.

I see HR assistants and HR coordinators in networks. But I would not say HR is their specialism. They are not trained in it.

I would really like to promote the idea that HR is not something we can all do. You can do it up to a point. But there comes a point where it is not your specialism, and that is where you need to bring people in.

When it comes to HR, you cannot Google it. You cannot go to AI and ask it to help you. Or you can, but it does not give you the advice you actually need.

What Jo said about job titles

"Practices and organisations, they may have someone who has done really well in recruiting. And then suddenly they call them an HR manager. And when you explore their background and knowledge, they're not.

They've just given them the title. And it's quite scary the amount of queries this person will put to me. It would be like me suddenly calling myself a finance manager. I know my accounts, but I would never say I could do finance."

That is the risk. Someone is good at one part of HR, they get given the HR Manager title, and then the disciplinaries, grievances, capability cases, and occupational health referrals start landing on their desk.

On AI and HR letters

I am a big advocate for AI in primary care. But it does need to be used with caution.

Jo had a client who decided he could do a lot of his HR letters himself using AI. He sent her his appeal outcome letter to review.

"It was so awful it took me longer to review and sort it out than it would have done if he'd just said, Jo, this is what's happened, can you draft me a letter? It didn't give the information that was so specific to the person in the situation."

AI gives you the basis. It does not understand your actual situation. For HR letters that have real consequences, that matters.

What qualifications actually look like

I have a CIPD qualification myself, and that is always my starting point when I think about whether someone is serious about an HR role. We have put some people on apprenticeships too.

But it is not just about qualifications. Experience matters as much. Jo shared:

"I believe HR qualifications do not prepare you for real life. You do your CIPD levels, you get the grounding, but it doesn't teach you to how to actually deal with people in a range of circumstances and who may have a range of conditions. The only way you can gain in the HR field is with experience and experience of different cases. And even now, 30 plus years on in HR, things still come up that I think, wow, I haven't seen that before."

So ideally you have both. Qualifications and experience.

On rushing recruitment

One more thing from our conversation that I want to share, because it is one of the most common things I see in networks.

"With recruitment, people think, that person's gone, let's recruit. But hang on. What's gone wrong that they're leaving? People rush it because they feel stepping back takes too much time. It doesn't. If you do it properly, the outcome is much better."

Every rushed exit. Every poorly handled grievance. Every capability case that escalates is because no one held it properly. It all costs time and money. Usually both.

What this means in practice

You do not need a full HR team in your PCN. You probably cannot afford one.

But you do need to ask yourself:

✅ Who are you calling an HR Manager? Are they qualified, and do they have the right experience for the role you have given them?

✅ Are you investing in the development of the people doing your HR work?

✅ Do you know where the limits of their expertise are, and when you need to bring in specialist support?

✅ Are you using AI for HR letters that should be drafted by someone who understands the situation?

People are the biggest resource, but also the biggest issue PCNs face. That has not changed. What can change is whether you have the right people in the right roles, with the right support, doing the work properly and productively.

Jo and I are running a webinar together on Thursday, 4 June at 1pm on occupational health: when to refer, what to ask, and how to read the report, as this is also a growing area which many PCN leaders are experiencing.

Also in attendance is Dr Shoby Sathananthan, Occupational Health Practitioner, whom Jo has referred her clients to for the past 10 years.

Click Here to Register

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