Wolverhampton hospital team strikes gold with award
A hospital team from Wolverhampton has struck gold after being named one of the best healthcare ‘recruiters’ in the country.
The NHS Futures Team – The Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust’s work experience team based at New Cross Hospital – has been awarded the Health Education England (HEE) Work Experience Quality Standard Gold Award.
The trust is one of only three in the NHS to have gained this recognition, and it comes after the team recruited 78 people from 127 work experience placements offered in 2022 – a 61.4 per cent success rate.
The team, which started as HealthTec in 2014, was particularly recognised for having robust systems and processes in place and detailed workbooks.
Sallie Johnson leads a team of six as NHS Futures manager and has been with the trust for four years.
“I’m so proud we’ve got this recognition," said the grandmother-of-one, from Wednesfield.
"I always knew how hard the team worked as this is what we do every day, so to be recognised nationally is fantastic.
“It’s probably the proudest moment of my career, but every time we have a celebration day of our graduates I feel very proud.
“This is because of the feeling you get from people who were down on their luck and have now developed into young professionals that will hopefully enjoy long careers with the trust. I feel very privileged to do the job I do. We know we can carry this on and go on to even greater things.”
Graduates from NHS Futures have secured work as porters, in laboratories, housekeeping and various clerical and administrative posts.
Sallie, 50, added: “It’s down to lots of people working together – we work with the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), Wolverhampton College, The Prince’s Trust and local job centres to try to give lots of people opportunities. It’s that linked pathway to get people temporary or permanent jobs that makes us stand out.”
Through the Prince’s Trust Get Into Hospital Services (GIHS) programmes, NHS Futures remains the top performing trust in the country for positive outcomes, for example graduates getting into paid employment three months post programme.
This year it has linked with both the nursing workforce and human resourcing to ensure placements are linked to current vacancies.
Due to this, it has successfully recruited 30 healthcare support workers to support the trust during winter pressures and beyond.
Louise Nickell, group director of education and training, said: “This is absolutely brilliant news – we’re all so proud of the team, and they put so much effort into this very important work.”
