Stockport chefs named winners of NHS Chef 2022
Huge congratulations to Shelley Pearson-Smith and Erica Bell from Stockport NHS Foundation Trust who have been crowned the winners of NHS Chef 2022. Their winning menu consisted of watercress soup with a poached egg; braised ox cheek, celeriac fondant and greens; wild mushroom tagliatelle; and chocolate fondant with Chantilly cream. The quality of food produced in the final was outstanding - all of the teams in the competition demonstrated the skill, knowledge and enthusiasm needed to deliver tasty and healthy food for our patients.
New National Standards for Healthcare Food and Drink
The new National Standards for Healthcare Food and Drink are available on the NHS England website. You can also read a summary in this short blog.
The Standards, developed following the NHS Food Review in collaboration with an expert panel of caterers, nurses, doctors, dietitians, and others, will ensure that patients, staff and visitors have access to good quality, healthy, nutritious food options, wherever they are in the country.
Apprenticeship Challenge update
Back in April we launched the Apprenticeship Challenge to increase the number of apprenticeships starts in Estates and Facilities from 450 to 1,000 per year.
Six months into the challenge, we have already had 320 people start new estates and facilities-specific apprenticeships. Thanks to your efforts and support this is over 70% of what we would normally get in a whole year, so a very promising start.
There are a range of resources available to support you to increase the number of apprenticeships starts in your organisation via the HASO (Healthcare Apprentice Standards Online) website. To find out more about how to get involved in the NHS Estates and Facilities Apprenticeship Challenge contact [email protected].
Estates Return Information Collection (ERIC) 2021/22
The 2021/22 ERIC dataset was published by NHS Digital on October 13, showing that the overall cost to run the NHS estate has increased from £10.2bn to £11.1bn. The level of backlog has also increased from £9.2bn to £10.2bn. Against the backdrop of a 24% increase in patient throughput, we have seen a reduction in clinical incidents by 21%, which is positive news and testament to all your hard work.
National PLACE collection running until November 30
The first full PLACE collection since 2019 was launched recently. This will run from September 5 until November 30, 2022. We ran two national webinars in the summer which provided an overview of PLACE, useful information about the process including the timetable, and a demonstration of PLACE mobile. If you missed these, or want to watch again, recordings of the webinars can be viewed on the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub.
Public Switched Telephone Service: service closure
The Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is coming to the end of its life and is gradually being replaced. There are a number of devices which are dependent on the PSTN such as health pendants, fire suppression systems, lift alarms, fax machines and credit card terminals. More information is available on the Hub that provides further background and the actions required of NHS Trusts and estates & facilities teams.
National Team wins Government Property Award
The National NHS Estates and Facilities Team won the ‘One Team’ award at this year’s Government Property Awards which took place last month. The team was recognised for their response to the pandemic and demonstrating effective collaboration, which has improved the sharing of knowledge, provided greater insight and ensured a deeper understanding of customers. The team received this award on behalf of the whole NHS EFM community.
Helen Griffin, Master Plan Lead in the national team, was also shortlisted for the Keystone Award for going above and beyond with professionalism and expertise to make a significant difference.
Hospital helicopter landing sites: data collection
We will shortly be launching a short survey around hospital helicopter landing sites, following a recent national webinar on this issue. The recording and other background material is available from the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub. Please keep an eye out for the request.
The Estates Net Zero Carbon Delivery Plan: Technical Annex
The Estates Net Zero Carbon Delivery Plan: Technical Annex provides more detailed support and guidance on the six themes and eleven strategic actions that were set out in the Delivery Plan, published in November 2021.
Flood Risk Tool
The Flood Risk Tool is now available for use. The toolkit has been developed to help Trusts to increase their understanding of flood risk across local sites and regional geographies; and inform business continuity and emergency preparedness plans for flood events.
Help us to improve the NHS Premises Assurance Model submission process
We would like to thank E&F teams following the submission of the PAM responses. We are continually looking to improve our processes so we would like to hear your thoughts and any suggestions to improve the experience. A survey has been sent to all registered users; if you have not received this and would like to provide some feedback please email [email protected].
National Estates and Facilities Workforce Engagement Forum
The National Estates and Facilities Workforce Engagement Forum is a great way to hear about our work, give your feedback, share best practice, and help shape future priorities. The Forum meets bi-monthly on the first Thursday of the month. E-mail [email protected] to join the distribution list. We will be focusing on the following topics at the next meetings:
• November 3 - Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
• January 5 - Recruitment
• March 2 - National Uniform and Employer Brand.
National Green Careers Week
The first National Green Careers Week, led by National Careers Week, takes place November 7-12. This is a great opportunity to reach our future workforce and make them aware of sustainability careers within NHS estates and facilities.
We have been working with Health Education England (HEE) to ensure that estates and facilities roles are featured during the week and encourage you to share profiles of some of your fantastic sustainability staff during the week. On Monday, November 7 at 5.30pm, HEE will be speaking to Niamh Malone, Net Zero Apprentice at NHS England and hosted by Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust on their Instagram Live (@HealthCareersUK) - do tune in if you can.
Look out for activity on #GCW2022, @NationalCareersWeek, @Green_Careers, @HealthCareersUK
Office of Government Property: Net Zero Carbon Closed Door Forum
The Office of Government Property Sustainability and Asset Performance team has arranged a Net Zero Closed-Door Forum on November 24. This is a great chance to meet others in the public sector net zero/decarbonisation field to hear case studies, share lessons learned as well as getting valuable peer-to-peer advice. The forum will be held on November 24, 11am - 1pm, at EMEX London.
National Webinars
Please note the following dates in your diaries:
• November 24 - National Standards for Healthcare Food and Drink, including the Great Food Good Health Programme, and NHS Chef 2022
• December 15 - ERIC 2021/22 (to be confirmed).
These sessions are being run by members of the National Estates and Facilities Team. The webinar links and joining instructions will be sent to all listed E&F contacts. NHS staff who would like to attend these sessions can also contact [email protected] or [email protected] to request an invitation. These sessions will take place from 11am until 12:30pm.
The recordings from the national webinars are all available from the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub. This now includes Fire Safety and Net Zero Carbon.
NHS Estates and Facilities contact e-mail addresses
The e-mail addresses for both the National Estates and Facilities Team and the NHS Estates Collaboration Hub are now:
• [email protected] and
NHS Estates and Facilities – Monthly Bulletin
The latest Bulletin was issued on October 31. The bulletin provides updates directly from NHS England’s NHS Estates and Facilities Team including the latest guidance, health technical memoranda and policy developments affecting your work, as well as celebrating the successes of the wider E&F community. NHS staff can register to receive future editions of the newsletter. The next edition is expected to be issued during the week commencing November 28.
NHS Estates Collaboration Hub
The Collaboration Hub is a protected space for local NHS estates and facilities teams to access key information as well as to collaborate and to share ideas and successes. Access to the Collaboration Hub for individuals from local NHS estates teams can be arranged by e-mailing [email protected].
We have been arranging masterclasses to help registered members understand and navigate the Hub more effectively. If you are interested in attending one of these sessions, please e-mail the above mailbox.
If your e-mail address has changed (perhaps to .nhs.net), or you have moved to another NHS Trust then please e-mail us with the details ([email protected]) so that we can update our records.
You can also follow our latest news and updates on the NHS Estates and Facilities LinkedIn page.
