Communications requested to take part in the voluntary testing of the Stakeholder Led Accreditation Programme, which looked at their delivery and performance against a set of co-produced quality standards.
The team were assessed by a panel of stakeholders representing service users and carers, corporate services and clinical services.
The programme is designed for corporate services and is an extension of the groundbreaking Service User Led Accreditation Programme.
By working collaboratively, the Quality Assurance and People Participation teams, service users, carers, clinical and corporate colleagues have developed the programme to recognise excellence, support improvement in patient and staff experience and develop key markers of quality that matter most to stakeholders.
The communications team deliver internal and external communications for the Trust, marketing and stakeholder engagement. They were assessed for their responsiveness, customer care to staff, service users and the public, knowledge of services, understanding of the needs of services, efficiency and sustainability.
The assessors awarded the bronze standard, describing the team as visible, available, friendly and approachable. They were struck by the level of care taken by the team to support patients and service users who contacted them directly, and the breadth of their knowledge and networks.
"Whilst we get positive feedback from those we are in contact with, it is nice to have this validated in a more formal and structured way,” said Glenn Mitchell, Head of Communications.
“The team work tirelessly to support the work of the Trust and to support those who need our services. I have even more reason to be very proud of this very special bunch. Well done everyone!"