Our Trust has achieved a Charter for People with Lived Experience (silver award), in recognition of our commitment to providing career opportunities for vulnerable and disadvantaged young people, particularly those who have been in care.

We were the only acute trust invited to take part in the pilot project for the charter, commissioned by NHS England, Health and Justice, which is responsible for commissioning healthcare for children and young people across secure and detained settings.  

The charter, developed by Career Matters, which works to improve opportunities for disadvantaged young adults not in traditional education or career paths, was awarded to our Trust in a virtual ceremony on Wednesday 30 March.

We were invited to take part in the pilot thanks to a young people’s volunteer programme we introduced in 2020. This was a six-month volunteer programme for local vulnerable or disadvantaged youngsters. At the end of the six months, they were registered with our in-house bank, giving them the opportunity to gain paid employment with our Trust and partners.

Chief Nurse, Kathryn Halford (above), said: “I am delighted we have been awarded this charter in recognition of our work to give vulnerable young people the opportunity to have a brighter future.

“This offers them the chance to gain skills which will help them into the workplace, enabling them to become self-sufficient, which also benefits our entire community.”

Hannah Kirkbride, Director of Career Matters, added: “The Lived Experience Charter was co-designed with people who have lived experience. The pilot project supported six organisations to review their policies, practices and environment to better support the inclusive recruitment of people with experience of criminal justice and care.

“It has been an incredible process that has increased job opportunities, influenced policy change and brough awareness of the barriers these people face.”