Hospital group shortlisted for two national 2020 HSJ awards

Date published: 21 November 2020


The Northern Care Alliance NHS Group - which includes the Royal Oldham Hospital - has announced that its Freedom to Speak Up team and its Inclusion Centre of Excellence team have both been shortlisted for national 2020 HSJ Awards.

The teams have been shortlisted in the ‘Freedom to Speak Up Organisation of the Year’ and the ‘NHS Workforce Race Equality’ categories respectively, recognising their outstanding contribution to healthcare.

The NCA has been shortlisted despite the tough competition from over 1,000 entries.

The organisation’s ‘Greater Manchester Public Sector Workforce Race Equality Transformation Programme’ and its ‘Embracing a FTSU Model in a Learning Organisation’ projects have both been selected based on their ambition, visionary spirit and the demonstrable positive impact that they have had on patient, partner and staff experiences within the health and social care sector.  

Raj Jain, Chief Executive at the NCA, said: “We are committed to delivering improved outcomes for our patients, partners and staff, and to be chosen among the other incredible nominees is a wonderful achievement.

"These nominations have been a tremendous boost to staff at the NCA and I am sure it will bolster our continued efforts to improve our services.”

About the NHS Workforce Race Equality entry

The NCA has been nominated for the development and delivery of the Greater Manchester Public Sector Workforce Race Equality Transformation Programmes.

As an Inclusion Centre of Excellence the NCA is working with the Police, Fire Service, NHS organisations and local authorities across the region to support them in acting to reduce the racial inequalities that exist across all those workforces.  

The initiatives include a Race Equality Change Agents Programme, gathering and utilisation of lived experience through the format of living library activities, and the launching of a multi sector reciprocal mentoring programme.

Alongside these active programmes, the NCA has worked to co-create a single set of six workforce race equality key data indicators, formed by working in partnership with Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Professionals, Trade Unions and senior leaders from all sectors.

The key data indicators allow for all public sector organisations to evaluate the impact of local change programmes and measure their performance with each other in a clear and open manner.

About the Freedom to Speak Up Organisation of the Year entry

The NCA has replicated its FTSU model across three separate organisations and FTSU has been woven into strengthening a supportive and inclusive culture making it a key element of the organisational culture.

The team has embedded a learning and safety culture into the FTSU service and that feeds into the Trust’s expectations to ''know our own story'' and ensure all patient safety concerns are raised and responded to.

Some unique aspects of the FTSU model include impartiality to existing investigation structures, transparency of cases reviewed to reduce fear of speaking up, in-house training based on real case examples, and good guardian retention peer support.


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