Hi, I’m Kate Atkinson, Director of Service Development and Improvement and I lead strategic planning and improvement practice across the Trust.
Five years ago, we started talking to people about our clinical strategy, which set out a clear direction for our Trust at a time when the world felt uncertain and healthcare was under enormous pressure following Covid. Since then, we’ve rebuilt, recovered and achieved so much together. Services have grown stronger, teams have pulled together and every day we’ve shown what safe, personal and effective care really looks like in practice.
There’s a lot to be proud of — and we are.
But we also know the world is changing. Our communities are changing. The NHS is changing. And so must we.
That’s why we’re creating a new strategy for the next five years. Not because it looks good on paper, but because it genuinely helps us move forward with clarity and purpose.
Our Trust is made up of thousands of people, dozens of professional groups, countless roles and responsibilities, and services that span homes, communities and hospitals. That diversity is one of our biggest strengths — but it also means we all see the organisation from different angles and through different experiences.
A clear strategy helps bring all of that together.
It gives us a shared direction, so whether you’re a nurse on a ward, an outpatient receptionist, a therapist, a consultant, a community team member, a domestic assistant, part of a specialist service or working in our corporate support teams, we’re all moving towards the same ambitions.
And most importantly, it helps us make better decisions for our patients and communities — because we’re guided by a common purpose and not just reacting to what’s in front of us.
Over the years, we’ve collected a lot of strategies and plans. They are all important and they’ve all played a role, but having things scattered across lengthy documents doesn’t make it easy for people to truly understand what we are trying to achieve.
Bringing everything together into one, simple, accessible plan means everyone will be able to see:
- What we’re aiming for
- Why it matters
- How we’ll get there
- And everyone’s role in delivering this vision.
This also gives us a chance to take stock of what’s happening nationally, with new plans emerging that focus on prevention, early help, digital innovation and long‑term health outcomes. We want to be aligned with those ambitions — while staying true to what our local communities need from us every day.
To bring this ambition to life, our new strategy is built around five key themes: quality and safety, value, people, performance and health equity. These themes reflect what matters most to the patients and communities we serve, as well as what our teams tell us they need to deliver outstanding care every day. Together, they give us a clear framework for making decisions, setting priorities and driving meaningful improvement across the organisation.
But it’ll only work if it reflects real experiences. That’s why over the coming weeks we will be asking what challenges you face and how we can improve that over the next five years.
We’ve been busy chatting with everyone from our patient groups to local leaders to make sure our new five-year plan actually works in the real world.
This week, we took over the Trust’s Teams Brief Live to share our thoughts with colleagues. I was really pleased to be joined by Director of Operations for Family & Community Care Group Vicky Hampson, Divisional Director of Operations in Surgery and Anaesthetic Services Alison Marsh and Head of Therapies Genese Warburton who shared how they have been getting their own team’s feedback and talked about what our five main themes look like on the ground.
It was great to hear how different teams are already spotting ways to tackle the specific frustrations their patients and staff face. The feedback so far has been brilliant, and while every department sees the plan a little differently, those five core themes keep us all pulling in the same direction.
We want to make sure we haven't missed anything vital before we put the final plan together. We’re keeping the conversation open until the end of the month, so please scan the QR code and tell us what you think. It only takes a minute, and it’s the best way to ensure the final version actually makes your working life easier and our patient care better.
Please take a moment to share your thoughts — they really do shape our plan for the future.
We’ve achieved so much in the last five years. With your voices guiding us, we can achieve even more in the next five.