How we improved our reward offering and culture
Overview
Midlands Partnership University NHS Foundation Trust (MPFT) was created following a merger in 2018, with South Staffordshire and Shropshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and Staffordshire and Stoke on Trent Partnership NHS Trust. The merger was challenging as traditional structures were uprooted and recognition ideas reformed for the new organisation.
Now in 2024, MPFT has significantly improved its NHS Staff Survey results across the ‘we are recognised and rewarded’ questions for the second year in a row. All achieved against the backdrop of a merger, the pandemic and a cost-of-living crisis.
MPFT has successfully put culture at its heart and improved its reward and recognition initiatives, staff satisfaction and buy in.
What the trust faced
One of the biggest challenges MPFT faced is the size of the geographical area it covers. The trust has a headcount of 10,000 staff and an additional 1,500 on its temporary staffing bank. MPFT is responsible for the healthcare of over 1.5 million people, with staff and resources spread from the Isle of Wight to Yorkshire.
The trust needed to develop its reward and recognition strategy to be of value to all staff across this large geography.
As new processes were created and the reward and recognition package was invested in, the COVID-19 pandemic hit. However, the pandemic provided an opportunity to enhance its staff recognition and reward schemes and further improve the culture of the organisation.
What the trust did
The trust developed several initiatives and a variety of reward and recognition schemes for staff, which have all contributed to its success, as seen in its most recent NHS Staff Survey results.
This included gifting ‘staff wellbeing time’ during the height of the pandemic where staff were provided with the space and time to look after their own wellbeing.
The trust also developed another recognition scheme called the Living Our Values Everyday, or ‘LOVE’ awards. This scheme was introduced in 2018, but it was updated during the COVID-19 pandemic to allow nominations from those external to the organisation, such as partner agencies, friends and family. The scheme also enables people to thank an individual, a whole team, as well as someone external to the organisation. Everyone receives a pin badge/certificate, card and a personalised email from the chief executive to say thank you.
MPFT also invested further into its long-service awards, by restructuring and renaming the scheme, ‘LOVE Long-Service Awards.’
This did have a financial impact on the organisation and from an administrative perspective it took a great deal of time, but staff feel valued for being recognised for their length of service.
From five years onwards, staff receive a card signed by the chief executive, and a pin badge is awarded for continuous service within the NHS, including those with continuous service in other public sectors. For 20 years’ service onwards, staff receive a gift voucher that increases in value as the length of service increases.
There were some challenges around this process in terms of staff proving their length of service before things became digitised. However, the trust has now distributed over 7,000 awards and recently awarded the first 50 year’s long-service award. This individual received their award from the director of nursing.
The trust has benefited from board and senior executive buy in for all its initiatives, which has helped the trust cement its approach to reward and recognition. The organisation worked hard through the COVID-19 pandemic to create a sense of family; branded ‘Team MPFT’ which gives staff feeling of ‘we are one’. The trust has been on a journey to embed its cultural values that also underpin the reward and recognition initiatives offered. The overarching aim is for these initiatives to have the greatest impact on staff to make them feel truly valued.
Financial wellbeing charter
The financial wellbeing charter was introduced in July 2022, as a response to the cost-of-living crisis. The trust’s financial wellbeing charter is based on the principle of promoting good financial wellbeing and providing support for all staff, with focused mechanisms of support for those individuals who need it. It pledges to work collaboratively with agencies best placed to provide specialist/expert support and informs how the organisation will support staff through three basic principles:
- We will support you to improve your financial wellbeing and where possible help to address financial hardship.
- We will focus on the costs it takes you to do your job.
- We will seek to support any other elements of hardship that you may face.
Guided by these principles the following financial wellbeing interventions have been implemented:
- increasing mileage rates and thresholds for all staff
- developing financial self-care and providing access to financial education guides
- access to advanced pay
- bespoke access to Citizens Advice
- access to the Financial Hardship Fund.
Results and benefits
One of the key benefits the organisation has seen following these changes is that staff feel more appreciated for the work they do, irrespective of their role, seniority or location.
The LOVE awards are very successful and positive feedback has been received from staff:
MPFT is excellent at recognising fantastic work by individuals or group of clinicians/staff and support the work to be shared nationally. Feedback to individuals is recognised with certificates of thanks and pin badge and this really boosts morale.
The work to improve staff recognition has shown positively in the latest set of NHS Staff Survey results, with the trust scoring above the NHS average in all recognition questions, as well as being one of the top performers across community trusts.
To highlight the positive impact seen for the results against the ‘we are recognised and rewarded’ questions, read the breakdown of survey results along with a comparison to its score in 2022, below.
Overcoming challenges
Implementing organisational wide schemes that are inclusive for all is difficult. It takes time, dedication and effort to truly embed a scheme. In addition to the challenges mentioned above, the obstacles the trust has encountered along the way include the resource required to get schemes running and then maintaining them long term. A senior HR advisor has been overseeing this initiative whilst the approach has been embedded, more latterly as the trust has moved into business as usual, tasks are supported across mainly admin roles.
In relation to the long-service awards, verifying length of service, particularly for the longest serving staff has been challenging and staff have felt frustrated at times. The trust used the Electronic Staff Record (ESR) system for the data on length of service, and made any corrections to service length after evidence was provided, such as pension records or confirmation from previous employers. However, once ESR is updated the information will be correct for future awards.
Takeaway tips
- Recognition doesn’t always need to be big schemes. Staff often appreciate the small things such a thank you, acts of kindness, letters from senior managers and shout outs. Use opportunities where they present themselves within your organisations.
- Think big, start small – the trust had lots of ideas about recognition early on and therefore had to take a staggered approach to implementing them.
- Make schemes that staff connect with, understand and are easy to use – automate steps wherever possible.
- Take time to celebrate milestone of schemes regularly – articles in newsletters, magazines, shout outs in team meetings can really help to keep momentum and boost staff morale.
Contact details
For more information contact Lisa Whitehouse, Associate Director of Culture and Staff Experience or Stuart Middleton, Associate Director of HR.
