Developing leading NHS HR policies: Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Overview

New starters fed back that HR policies were not engaging or accessible, so the trust committed to developing a new policy manual from scratch. A working group, involving representatives from all sides, developed an accessible, practical and concise product. As a result, NHS Staff Survey scores for Yeovil District Hospital NHS Foundation Trust (YDH) became some of the best in the country and staff retention increased. The Care Quality Commission said of the final product 'this is the best set of policies we have seen in the NHS'.

Background

YDH was determined to retain its diverse nursing staff. Committed to making everyone feel welcome, colleagues met with every new starter and asked them about their experience of joining. A recurring theme in these discussions was that new starters found that the HR policies were not engaging or accessible. HR documents were long, dry and transactional. The trust committed to tearing up these documents and developing a new set of policies and a manual from scratch, which better met the needs of its staff.

Action taken

To achieve this, the trust established a working group, making sure all stakeholders were represented. Previously, HR policy documents had been developed in isolation by HR teams, then shared with other stakeholders down the line, which would then cause conflict and disagreements. Members of the HR team, staff side reps, trade union officials, members of staff who spoke English as a second language and counter fraud specialists were all involved from the outset. The group agreed terms of engagement, those involved were given clear responsibilities, and strict deadlines were set. The group met on neutral ground away from the hospital site, minimising work distractions and putting all stakeholders on a level setting. This group met once a week for a year, with many saying it was the highlight of the week.

​​​​​​​The role of partnership working

YDH worked hard to develop a great relationship with trade unions. This provided the foundation stone for partnership work on the manual. Involving trade unions, along with other key stakeholders, from the beginning ensured a collaborative approach, with any conflict during the process avoided.   

Results and benefits

The group achieved its aim of stripping away unnecessary text, leaving short and simple information, as demonstrated by the disciplinary process, which was reduced from 30 pages to four.

The resulting manual hit all objectives set at the beginning of the process; it being:

• useful
• written in plain English, free from jargon
• short and simple
• appealing to the eye
• available electronically or in hard copy
• current
• legally compliant
• agreed by all stakeholders. 

The manual allowed managers to be more independent in taking responsibility for the HR processes. One manager said, “I love this manual – it makes my life so much easier!”

The manual achieved its overall purpose of increasing staff retention and satisfaction. Staff turnover decreased by five per cent and sickness level decreased to below three per cent (compared to a national average of 4.4 per cent at the time). The success encouraged the trust to use this approach for all future documents, specifically in its people and organisational development plan.

Sharing learning

NHS Employers passed the manual on to every trust in the South West as an exemplar model of HR policies.

YDH again worked in partnership with staff side and international colleagues to update the policy manual. This updated version now incorporates Just and Learning principles. Trusts from around the country took interest in this project and learning into their own policies.