In addition, £2.3m is being spent on supporting 2,000 young people from deprived areas to apply to medical courses.

Secretary of state for health and social care, Wes Streeting, said: ‘By backing people from every background to train and work in the NHS, this will benefit patients, the NHS and students.'

Students from under-represented backgrounds will be able to apply to courses from spring next year, working with NHS England and partners like the Sutton Trust, Social Mobility Foundation and Medical Schools Council.

The Government will also expand or reallocate medical school places so that areas with poorer health outcomes or ageing populations train more doctors locally, alongside a pledge to increase by 50% the proportion of students who received free school meals being accepted into medical school in England by 2035.

To support doctors from disadvantaged backgrounds who face higher relocation costs, the Government will also trial a three-year pilot programme that will see resident doctors stay in one place for longer, easing the financial burden and disruption to family life.

Alongside these measures, £15m in Government funding will expand a programme to support around 3,000 young people from deprived communities into NHS entry-level roles or training, for vital back office roles.

In the first year of the programme nearly 3,500 people were offered care paths into the health service.