Staff rate Sherwood Forest Hospitals as Midlands’ best NHS hospital Trust to work for

Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been rated as the best NHS acute hospital trust in the whole of the East and West Midlands to work at for the fourth year running in the latest national NHS Staff Survey results.

Almost three-quarters of staff (74.9%) at Sherwood Forest Hospitals – which runs Mansfield’s King’s Mill and Mansfield Community Hospitals and Newark Hospital – said that they would recommend the Trust as a place to work, making it the second-best acute trust in the country.

More than eight in 10 staff (81.7%) at the trust also said they would recommend the trust as a place to receive treatment for friends and relatives – another top score for the whole of the Midlands.

On the nine main themes in the survey, which include topics like compassion and inclusivity, recognition and reward, having a voice that counts, staff engagement and morale, and flexible working, the Trust ranked third in the country out of all other similar hospital trusts.

Other key highlights for the trust include:

• Staff morale (6.4 out of 10) remains the best in the Midlands and among the best of any acute trust in the country, despite the ongoing impact of the pandemic and the pressures that NHS staff continue to face
• Ranked as the third most compassionate and caring acute trust in the country, with a score of 7.6 out of 10
• 5% of staff said they would feel secure in raising and reporting concerns – a picture that has improved for the fifth year in a row at the Trust
• The majority of staff (83.9%) agree that the care of patients remains the organisation's top priority – a picture that continues to improve against surveys from before the pandemic

Sherwood Forest Hospitals’ Chief Executive, Paul Robinson, said: “I am pleased and proud that Sherwood Forest Hospitals has once again been rated the best in the Midlands and among the very best hospital trusts to work for in the country by the hard-working NHS staff and volunteers who have been doing all they can to keep essential services running throughout the pandemic.

"We know from experience that staff provide the very best care to patients when they feel valued, supported and listened to through open conversations and surveys like this, which is why it’s so pleasing to be rated so highly as a place that staff would recommend for their own friends and relatives to receive treatment.

"We place a real emphasis on the wellbeing of our team and although we have so much to be proud of from these results, we also know that staff across the NHS are feeling the strain of working through the pandemic. That’s why it’s so important that we continue the work we’re doing to make Sherwood Forest Hospitals an even better place to work.

“Thank you to all colleagues and volunteers working across the organisation for the commitment you have shown once again this year and for being there for each other. It is you that makes Sherwood Forest Hospitals a truly great place to work”

The Trust has listened to what staff have said in previous staff surveys and have put initiatives in place to support them to feel happier in their work. Sherwood Forest Hospitals’ Director of Culture and Improvement, Emma Challans, added: “It is important to us that Sherwood has a culture of learning, respect and kindness.  I am warmed to see that colleagues feel better supported to share and report experiences of bullying and harassment and that we will act on their feedback. It is also great to see that the majority of colleagues believe that Sherwood is a great place to work and feel supported to do their role. 

 “Although our results are largely positive, we are very mindful that the last two years has had an enormous strain on our people.  There are clearly areas that we need to further understand and we will work with our teams to identify ways to improve their working lives and in return the care we provide to our community. We are already looking at ways that we can retain the staff that we already have while attracting new people to join us, as well as improving career pathways within Sherwood.

“I am confident that we will continue to work together in a supportive, open and inclusive way and wherever possible, aim to improve Sherwood as a great place to work and receive care. 

 “Thank you to all of our colleagues and volunteers in Sherwood, I hope you are all very proud of yourselves, because we are of you.”

Are you looking to join an NHS Trust where its own staff ranks it as the best Trust in the whole of the Midlands? You can view Sherwood Forest Hospitals’ current vacancies here.

Sherwood Forest Hospitals takes part in the annual National NHS Staff Survey each year and all colleagues were invited to share their views anonymously. The results are primarily intended for use by NHS organisations to help them review and improve staff experience. The Care Quality Commission uses the results from the survey to monitor ongoing compliance with essential standards of quality and safety. You can view the full results report on the NHS Staff Survey website.