East Midlands Ambulance Service (EMAS), pictured left, were one of the successful organisations to receive a partnership fund award. EMAS Chief Executive, Paul Phillips said "this practical support from the Social Partnership Forum is a real boost to our work. We want a workforce that is representative of the people we serve, and engaging with all communities will undoubtedly help us to achieve this. Our project is going to promote dialogue and build relationships that will make a difference, and so we are really grateful to the SPF for its investment in this initiative." Read more about the EMAS bid here.
Background
The partnership fund was launched in November 2008. Regional SPFs received bids from local organisations in June 2009 and these were sifted and forwarded to a national panel of SPF members for decision in July 2009.
The partnership fund encouraged bids from all NHS organisations and operated against a number of key principles which included:
- Preference given to innovative bids (rather than basic training courses eg establish partnership forums)
- Bids to the fund needed to support the overall goal of embedding partnership working across the NHS
- Bids needed be co-produced by staff sides and management in partnership
- Successful bidders agreed to share information about their projects, implementation, outcomes and learning and agree to be involved in other agreed research. (nb: this may include things which don’t go so well!)
- Successful bidders will champion partnership working on behalf of SPF.
The bids fit under one of the following categories:
- Improved quality of patient care/services.
- Developing higher standards of employment practice eg supporting constitution pledges.
- Effective implementation of specific local organisational goals.
- Effective staff engagement/communication.
The successful projects
From over 45 applications put forward by the Regional SPFs the national panel were delighted to be able to fund 18 partnership projects. The projects were implemented throughout 2009/10. Read more about the successful projects here.
Pictured left are members of the successful South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust team - read more about their project to increase engagement with staff by facilitation of '30 little conversations'.
The partnership fund event
On 16 March 2010 the partnership fund award winners gathered with colleagues from around the country to share the learning and experience from their projects. To read more about the event, and to view the presentations from the day click here.