The National Guardian Freedom to Speak Up recognises First Community for ranking first across all Speaking Up questions and in some cases having scores improving where most organisations are deteriorating in the NHS 2022 staff survey.
Freedom to Speak up is about enabling staff to speak up about anything that gets in the way of doing a great job. Freedom to Speak Up Guardians support workers to speak up when they feel that they are unable to in other ways.
There is over 1,000 Freedom to Speak Up guardians in NHS primary and secondary care and independent sector organisations, national bodies and elsewhere that ensure workers can speak up about any issues impacting on their ability to do their job.
83% of First Community staff said they feel safe to speak up about anything that concerns them in the organisation in the NHS 2022 staff survey. This is an increase from 75% in the previous year. First Community is proud of its open, learning culture and flat structure. Several Speaking Up mechanisms are in place and available to all staff for example Floor to Board, Council of Governor’s, two Freedom to Speak Up Guardians and several guidance documents.
First Community plan to continue with and improve further their Speaking Up process by listening to staff and learning from their Speaking Up experiences and continuing to empower staff to learn and improve.