As the NHS celebrated its 75^th birthday (Wednesday 5 July), we hosted a packed week full of celebrations for our staff, their families, and 600 local schoolchildren. We held more than 10 events, celebrating with more than 5,000 of our staff and their families.

On Friday 7 July we had a day of celebrations, starting with breakfast at Queen’s Hospital. Staff coming to work mingled with those just finishing their night shifts to enjoy a hearty breakfast.

Laura Thomas, healthcare assistant, said: “It’s lovely to see everybody together, it’s like a big family.”

Then the fun moved to King George Hospital where staff were treated to three lunch sittings, with entertainment from our very own Pfizer Chiefs, a staff band including our CEO Matthew Trainer and Alan Wishart, our Director of Workforce and a founding member of 80s Scottish rock band Big Country.

After wowing staff with his singing, Matthew (pictured above alongside guitarist and Associate Director of Workforce Adam Souris) said: “It’s lovely to see people getting out of work and getting together, eating and smiling and chatting to one another.”

There was music and dancing at a lively afternoon tea event at Queen’s Hospital, which also included performances from Bollywood dancers and our own staff choir, Sound of Pride. Then Queen’s also hosted an evening party, which included another rousing performance from the Pfizer Chiefs, who invited brave colleagues up to join them for a karaoke session.

On Saturday 8 July, lots of our staff came together to take part in a special ‘parkrun for the NHS’, in matching blue t-shirts, before colleagues and their loved ones enjoyed a family fun day.

Held at King George Hospital, it included entertainment for everyone with fairground rides, competitions, and treats including ice cream and candy floss – and even the rain showers couldn’t put a dampener on the fun families were having together.

Kathryn Thompsett, our divisional director for women and child health, said: “It’s been really well organised and makes me feel valued.

“Prioritising staff being able to come to something like this is really important. It’s great the Trust has done it, as I don’t think there are many that do. It makes me realise how much the organisation does genuinely care about its staff.”

Rosemary Booth, COPE (Community Orthopaedic Project in Essex) team lead, added: “The really good thing about it is just taking a bit of time out to network and meet people, catching up with those you don’t always see when you’re in your own working environment.

“It’s been a great time and it’s been fantastic to have been able to celebrate 75 years, of which I’ve done 40 in the NHS.”

While staff nurse Adenike Opeyemi said: “I’m really happy because this is the first time I’ve seen this kind of thing. It’s a good thing for the hospital to have made a provision for our family to have fun and to spend time together.”

Earlier celebrations include a debate entitled, ‘What will the NHS look like at 100?’, on the big day itself (Wednesday 5 July). A panel of local and national experts joined host, our Chair Jacqui Smith, to discuss the future of the health service.

We invited 600 local schoolchildren to find out more about opportunities in the NHS at two career fairs, where they also got to tour interactive stalls which showed how much the NHS had changed over the years.

Teams got into the celebratory spirit by decorating wards and departments to mark the occasion, with prizes for the best, and our 75^th birthday was a great opportunity to recognise some of our long-serving team members; nurses Sandra Mahoney and Janet Copp, and playworker Davina Yeomans, who have completed a combined 113 years at our Trust.

See more photos from our NHS 75 celebrations