No, we don’t think so. If you have an established relationship with a practice, your NASGP Locum Chambers will help you maintain that relationship. Practices can ‘Favourite’ you and specifically book you. It’s a collaboration rather than a competition.
Any GP work where similar support is provided by the service you are working for is considered as ‘off-locum’ or non-standard work. You can add it to LocumDeck without undermining your NASGP Locum Chambers.
How we define non-standard work:
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- The service has its own booking or rota system and is not able to book you via NASGP Locum Chambers.
- Payments are made directly to you via a salaried system or ad-hoc fees, with any pensionable work claimed using GP Form solo.
- The service has its own in-house clinical governance and support services. This is important because:
- Commonly these services will be some form of an OOH service (e.g. provides ad hoc services for patients not registered with the practice).
- Other examples include deputising services, GP co-operatives, walk-in centres and minor injuries/illness units.
Very quickly. Once an NASGP member applies to join a locum chambers, it can be a matter of days until their application is approved.
For example one NASGP member went from application to membership in just 11 days in 2020. Two weeks later he was booked for seven all-day sessions through the same chambers.
We recommend that GP locums who are keen to fast-track their application get their references ready to speed up the process.
Membership Support Manager Ali Lewis says she managed to add a new locum chambers member in just 10 days.
Ali says: “The GP is early on in his career, and very focused – it has only taken 10 days to get him from his application to chambers to chambers membership.
“He’d filled in as much information as he could in his application, and got his references ready.”
But, Ali adds, some GP locums prefer to take it slow – and that’s fine too.
She says: “Not every GP can join as quickly as he could. For example, another GP locum got in touch with us last May. She is moving across the country with her family, and looking for a new home at the same time, so her application took a few months.
“Everyone’s circumstances are different and the important thing for us is to go at the GP’s pace.”
Join an NASGP locum chambers near you today.
To join an existing NASGP Locum Chambers, log into the LocumDeck dashboard:
- In the list of NASGP Locum Chambers, click the one you want to apply to and click ‘apply’.
- A chambers manager will get in touch. It’s that easy.
Find and apply to your local NASGP Locum Chambers, or contact us to get us to quickly set one up in your area.
One of our members asked recently: “In the Gov.UK IR35 questionnaire, it asks ‘Do you provide your services through a limited company, partnership or unincorporated association? An “unincorporated association” is an organisation set up by a group of people for a reason other than to make a profit. For example, a voluntary group or a sports club’. As I work through NASGP Locum Chambers, should I tick yes?”
Our specialist employment lawyer advises: “The answer is no. Although NASGP Locum Chambers assists the locums in locating employment, the GP locum is not providing his services ‘through’ the chambers. That would only be the case if the chambers was the contracting party with the Medical Center.”
Read more on IR35.
Yes! GPs don’t need to change the way they manage their accounts when they join NASGP Locum Chambers – they can continue to work self-employed or via a limited company.
We know that it’s a big commitment for GPs to join an NASGP Locum Chambers.
We also know from experience that if a GP is willing to join NASGP Locum Chambers, they’ll experience several benefits.
- Taking the fee into account many GP locums report that they earn more after joining an NASGP Locum Chambers: the wraparound professional and administrative services of the chambers frees up time and creates opportunities to earn more and develop their careers.
- Some NASGP Locum Chambers members, reassured by the support of chambers, feel able to work more sessions in a wider range of practices. Others focus on developing special clinical interests (all very welcome in chambers) or take on non-clinical roles as part of a portfolio career.
- Analysis of sessions fees across the LocumDeck platform show that fees for sessions that are booked using Instant Book – which is how all NASGP Locum Chambers sessions are booked – are on average 12% higher. Read more.
In summary: your pay rates for locum work are your business, set entirely by you to reflect what you see as your value to practices and to cover your needs.
A subscription to NASGP Locum Chambers costs £31 a month – this cost is a tax-deductible expense. GPs set their own rates, then pay £11 per session in Instant Book fees (capped at 20 sessions/month). There are no further costs to joining. Join today.
GP locums within our Chambers remain self-employed and able to contribute to the NHS pension scheme. The practice pays the full session fee direct to the GP locum, who then pays the Chambers a management fee.
Yes! In an NASGP Locum Chambers, GPs select their own availability, session structures, pay rates, and preferred practices.
Joining NASGP Locum Chambers means you become part of a respected collective:
- Lower, capped booking fees. £11 per session (Instant Book), capped at 20 per month, £11 per session (remote).
- Business managed on your behalf. A dedicated manager for your GP locum work.
- A clinical director. Benefit from facilitated feedback and communication with practices all via your NASGP Locum Chambers manager.
- Regular meetings. Enjoy built-in peer support, mentorship and meet-ups.
- Appraisal facilitation. Benefit from facilitated feedback and communication with practices.
- CPD events. Attend monthly education events online and in-person.
- NASGP member benefits included. All the benefits of Membership Plus, and more.
