From CEPNs to Training Hubs: a decade of population-level workforce education and their strategic role in delivering the NHS 10-Year Plan

Since 2013, CEPNs-and, from 2018, Training Hubs-have provided locally led, multi-professional mechanisms for workforce education in primary and community care, aiming to match training supply and skill mix to population health needs. To synthesise the development, evolution, and impact of CEPNs/THs and assess their strategic alignment with the NHS 10-Year Health Plan (July 2025). Evidence from local evaluations and national guidance indicates CEPNs/THs expanded placement capacity, supported interprofessional learning, integrated new roles into primary care, and improved links between education providers and employers-albeit against a backdrop of regional variability and short-termism in funding. The 10-Year Plan's 'three shifts' (community-first, digital enablement, prevention) map directly to Training Hub functions, but require stronger place-based embedding, stable investment, and outcomes-focused evaluation. With explicit policy backing, multi-year funding, and standardised impact measures, Training Hubs can function as the operational bridge between national strategy and local delivery for the decade ahead.