GP leaders are to continue to press for a plan to stem the loss of doctors from their profession, following the promise of a significant increase in trainees.

The Government confirmed on Friday that it proposes to increase GP training places by 50%, reaching 6,000 trainees a year by 2032. But the Royal College of GPs said it hope the new plan was “the beginning of a huge piece of work to ensure the NHS remains sustainable” It said that a workforce plan must “include initiatives to retain experienced GPs in the profession”.

Under the plan, an additional 500 GP training places will be added over the next two years with a further 500 added by 2028. Another 1,000 would then be due to be added by 2032. The plan includes a significant section on retention, focused on the hospital workforce. This supports calls from the medical unions for all staff to be provided with rest facilities and access to food – and calls for cultural changes to ensure staff are valued. It also calls for more work to ensure flexible career pathways. It also calls for medical students to have routine access to experience of general practice – with all of them having the option of a four months placement.

Royal College of GPs chair Professor Kamila Hawthorne said: “We’re hearing are some encouraging proposals, particularly in terms of training more medical students, increasing capacity in GP training, and a renewed focus on retaining existing staff. We already have more GPs in training than ever before, and we hope this plan means this trajectory will continue.

“But more GPs are leaving the profession than entering it – often earlier than planned and citing stress and burnout as reasons. The College has been clear that any workforce plan must include initiatives to retain experienced GPs in the profession, as well as recruiting more – we particularly look forward to seeing the details of this part of the plan. Looking to the future and having ambitious, long-term aspirations is important. Indeed, it’s vital, and the fact this plan is the first of its kind is historic. But we can’t ignore the intense pressures GPs and our teams – indeed, colleagues across the NHS – are working under in the here and now. GPs and our teams will continue to need significant support and resource in the short term, so that we can deliver the safe, timely and appropriate care our patients need, without working ourselves into the ground.”

The Institute of General Practice Management said it was hopeful the plan would provide support for practice managers. This has included the expansion of apprenticeships for prospective practice managers. It said it now wants to work with NHS England on projects to improve retention in areas such as tackling the pay disparity between management in primary and secondary care – and cutting bureaucracy and removing duplication of effort and resources.

It said: “We need to retain the staff that we do have and encourage new entrants into this highly skilled and rewarding profession.”