Solent NHS Trust wins national award for positive speaking up culture

Solent NHS Trust is really pleased to have been presented with a national award by NHS England Chief Executive, Simon Stevens, for its positive speaking up culture.

The Trust was invited to the Freedom to Speak Up event (FTSU) at Westminster on Tuesday 8 October 2019 by the National Guardian’s Office where it was given a certificate for its work.

Freedom To Speak Up Guardians exist in all NHS Trusts across the country, allowing staff to seek confidential advice and support if they have a concern in the workplace.

They can help raise any concerns and provide colleagues with confidential advice and support. The guardians help ensure the Trust is an open and transparent place to work where everyone is encouraged and enabled to speak up safely.

Solent was crowned as the best performing combined mental health, learning disability and community trust in the country following its annual NHS staff survey results, where staff said they felt comfortable raising issues. It had the second highest FTSU index score in the country.

People at the event heard from Dr Henrietta Hughes, National Guardian for the NHS, who said that broadly speaking, the index reveals a very strong correlation between Trusts that are rated highest by the CQC and those that have a high speaking up culture.

Sue Harriman, Chief Executive at Solent NHS Trust, said: “I am very proud that Solent has been acknowledged by our own colleagues in its staff survey as being a workplace that gives staff the freedom and confidence to speak up.

“I’m delighted that Solent has been recognised with this national award for the work we have been doing around Freedom to Speak Up and we are committed to continuing to make Solent a great place to work.

“We believe that our approach is fundamental in moving us from ‘good’ to ‘outstanding’ in our CQC ratings. We know that having a positive speaking up culture leads to better care for our patients and really impacts on the care we provide.”