Representation of the public interests of patients in the community

The Council of Governors have a duty to represent the interests of members and the public.  The Board regularly meets with the Council of Governors formally at least five times a year at the Council of Governors meetings.  The majority of Governors are active within our local district and have both informal and formal connections with third sector and statutory health related organisations.    The Board of Directors routinely engage with the Council of Governors in line with the Governors statutory duties and responsibilities.

Our Trust manages its relationship with the Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee through the office of Governance and Corporate Affairs. Directors attend meetings of the Overview and Scrutiny Committees when requested by them to discuss matters related to local NHS policy and planning.

The Health and Social Care Overview and Scrutiny Committee is also presented annually with a draft of the Foundation Trust’s Quality Report for comment (and inclusion within our Quality Report) prior to publication of the report.

Our Trust has arrangements in place with Healthwatch Bradford and District.  These informal arrangements are managed through the office of the Chief Nurse and primarily support Healthwatch in undertaking local outreach work from our hospital sites to support their engagement activities.

The Council of Governors have met with Healthwatch as part of their engagement with external stakeholders.

Formal arrangements are in place for the receipt of inspection reports from Healthwatch concerning our Foundation Trust, and Healthwatch is presented annually with a draft of the Foundation Trust’s Quality Report for comment prior to the final publication of the report. The statement from Healthwatch is included within the report.

The Trust has an active volunteering community which continues to grow significantly.  The largest of our volunteer groups are the Friends of BRI, and the Friends of St Luke’s.

The Trust also has an active and highly regarded Chaplaincy Volunteer Group.  All Volunteers are encouraged to provide feedback with regard to service users through the volunteer manager and chaplaincy manager.

Staff networks are recognised as being crucial to the promotion of the Trust’s wider equality and inclusion agenda. Their activities can help open the door to a change in culture and improved staff experience on specific issues relating to each network.

The networks provide members of staff who identify with a protected group or have specific interests with a safe, welcoming and practical platform where exchanging information, generating and sharing views and new ideas can be expressed in an informal environment. The networks also provide peer support, networking opportunities and social activities. We have three active staff networks:

• Black and Asian Minority Ethnic (BAME) Staff Network
• Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender (LBGT+) Staff Network
• Disabled Staff Network

The interests of patients and the public are also addressed through the Trust’s responses to the national patient and staff surveys, local surveys and internal Trust-wide and specialty specific initiatives related to patient, carer and public engagement and our organisational development.

The feedback from a range of sources including the governors and other groups and organisations is initially first considered at one or more of the committees of the Board of Directors.

The committees of the board are:

• The Finance and Performance Committee
• The Quality Committee
• The Workforce Committee
• The Partnership Committee

Reports are then presented for consideration or action to the Board of Directors’ open meetings. The meetings are held in public and all are welcome to attend.