Staff engagement and involvement

NHS Employers is working with the Department of Health (DH) and the NHS trade unions to develop work on staff involvement, staff engagement and the NHS staff survey.

Background

A new policy group on staff engagement and involvement has recently been established by the DH, with representations from NHS Employers, the NHS trade unions, the Healthcare Commission and the Institute for Employment Studies (IES).

Reporting to the DHs People Matters executive group, the policy group is mapping various activities that will contribute to the whole spectrum of staff engagement and involvement and will focus on the areas where national support can help make a difference at local level and on sharing good practice and support materials.

NHS Employers' work

NHS Employers is taking forward a range of work aimed at improving the experience of staff working in the NHS:

• We are working closely with DH and the NHS trade unions as members of the national policy group on staff engagement, which will include publication of the business case and further support for trusts.
• We will collate a database of good practice on staff engagement initiatives, building on our national conference on engagement in London on July 15.
• Staff engagement will also be a major theme at our annual conference, Leading workforce thinking, in November.
• Through our membership of the national staff survey working group we are working with DH and the NHS trade unions to help maximise the potential of the staff survey. Based on the latest staff survey findings, the SPF has identified five priority areas in which actions plans are being scoped:
  • work -related stress
  • violence
  • harassment, bullying and abuse
  • appraisal
  • staff engagement and job satisfaction.
• We are continuing to work closely with the NHS Confederation networks to ensure that areas where improvements are most needed - such as among ambulance staff - get the necessary support.
• We have established a joint steering group with the NHS trade unions to look beyond the Improving Working Lives programme and established an employers' reference panel on the issue. The work has commenced with an assessment of the original standards and whether they need updating as well as revitalising the IWL leads network.

Case studies

• We are keen to facilitate sharing of good practice and to develop tools to support trusts with their work in this area. To help us to do this we would like to hear about any work you are undertaking around staff engagement and the staff survey, this will enable us to set up a database and share good practice via our website. Please email a brief overview of any activities or projects to staffengagement@nhsemployers.org