Every Manager, Every Team

The Team Canvas

Picture1.png

As a manager or team leader, your role is pivotal in guiding your team towards success. The most effective teams have a shared purpose, need to work together to achieve that purpose and meet regularly to review their progress.

The team canvas is a collaborative tool that will helps every manager and every team to: 

  • Connect to Merseycare’s vision to lead the way in perfect, whole person care that helps people of all ages lead healthier lives.
  • Develop team objectives that promote and progress our six strategic intentions and clinical strategy.
  • Give everyone a voice to continually improve what matters most in your team.

Our team canvas area and guides are designed to help you make the best use of the team canvas approach, and in particular, to refresh your canvas during the team canvas window.

It provides a framework and easy access to tools and activities that will maximise your team's engagement and the overall impact of the canvas. With this guide, we want to support you to lead your team effectively and foster an inclusive, productive and innovative environment.

What is the Team Canvas?

  • The Team Canvas is an evidence-based tool introduced into Mersey Care for teams, designed to support effective team-based working, with collective and inclusive leadership to facilitate operational and clinical excellence.
  • It is designed to facilitate and structure collective team based conversations on those key areas of purpose (our why) what/ how/ who and so what and capture these on a simple one page template.
  • We know teams with a clear purpose, that develop a positive culture as a result of agreed behaviours, who are clear on who does what and when and that regularly review their progress and impact, are the most effective teams
  • Using a team canvas is a simple approach to help leaders and teams to engage on those aspects that matter to us when we work in a team. It also supports teams to make sense of trust wide strategies and goals and ensure that the work we all do is aligned to our collective vision and mission.

What do I need to do?

  • All teams will be required to review and refresh their team canvas once a year, as a minimum, between April and June following the release of the Trust’s annual operational plan.
  • As a manager you must ensure you engage in team based conversations to review and refresh your canvas.
  • When refreshed, you must upload a PDF copy of your team canvas to the team canvas library
  • Team canvas’ will be quality assured through the QRV process (for clinical teams) and quality sampling (non clinical teams)
  • All staff have access to the Team Canvas library where Canvas’ from teams across the Trust can be viewed at any time. 

Team Canvas 1.png

Team Canvas 2.png

How to guides, templates and prompt questions can be found on SharePoint.

1. Upload your Team Canvas

Click on the image below to upload your Team Canvas.

Team Canvas 3.png

2. Complete the relevant fields for your team

Team Canvas 4.png

To note:

  • Team names are linked to the definitive team list DTL
  • Select the date your team canvas was completed not the date of upload
  • The library will only store the most recent Team Canvas uploaded for your team
  • Your Team Canvas file must be uploaded as a .pdf file.

3. Add and upload your file

Team Canvas 5.png

4. Confirmation of submission

Team Canvas 6.png

Click the home icon to return to the Team Canvas home page.

Click on the link below to acces your Team Canvas.

Team Canvas 8.png

Search by typing team name as listed in the DTL and double click to view.

Team Canvas 9.png

Why the Team Canvas approach?

The Team Canvas approach benefits us all and ultimately supports the delivery of high quality, safe and effective patient care.

Picture2.png

How to prepare prior to updating your Team Canvas?

1. Gather Feedback and develop insight

What are the current successes, challenges and areas for improvement within the team? Use feedback from team members and your team data which may include

•Staffing – including vacancies, health, wellbeing and sickness absence and turnover

•Leadership – training and development

•Team competencies – training, skills and development

•Team engagement – recent staff survey, people pulse or TED results

•Team performance – QRV feedback, service performance, patient outcomes and patient safety, financial performance 

[Operational Excellence PoC - Power BI] 

2. Where are we going?

Take time to understand our strategy and operational plan, values and perfect care goals. What do these mean for your team? 

[Our strategy, plans and values :: YourSpace Mersey Care] 

3. Dedicate time

Plan how you will complete the team canvas as a team and the approach you will take. Schedule dedicated time with your team to work on developing and refreshing your team canvas.

Collaboration is key – Get creative…

  • To achieve the benefits of the team canvas for team members, leaders and the organisation, collaboration is key.
  • The nature of our work means that it isn’t always possible to have full team away days to develop your team canvas and a different approach might be needed. Here are some creative and alternative ideas on maintaining collaboration and co- development of your team canvas from teams across the trust.

Picture3.png

Develop

The insight from your preparation will help you to focus on the areas that matter most for your team.

The following guides for each section of the team canvas will highlight when you may need to focus on team based conversations and refresh that area of your team canvas.

Remember, as a minimum, you should refresh you team objectives at least once a year following the release of the annual operational plan.

Best practice is to continually and collectively review your team canvas and the progress you are making towards your goals.

Why is it important?

Unites the Team: A shared purpose aligns everyone toward a common goal, boosting motivation and clarity.

Drives Impact: It helps teams prioritise, collaborate effectively, and understand how their work contributes to “perfect, whole person care”.

You need to focus on it when:

  • There’s low engagement and lack of enthusiasm in team meetings and projects.
  • Goals are missed and progress is hard to measure.
  • Confusion or disagreement about priorities, direction or success criteria.
  • Staff feedback – improve scores on NHS staff survey e.g for We Are at Team “the team I work in has a set of shared objectives” / Staff engagement “I am enthusiastic about my job”.

Top tips:

  • Keep to 1 or 2 sentences and use simple language.
  • CHECK – does your purpose describe why the team exists or is it more what they do?
  • Start your purpose statement with “we believe…” 

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

We believe every older adult deserves to live with dignity and the best possible quality of life. We build trusted relationships and deliver integrated community-based person-centred care, enabling them to stay well, safe and connected.

Why is it important?

Enhance Patient Care: Clear team objectives align us to our shared goals, improving coordination and patient outcomes.

Boost Team Performance: They foster accountability and focus, enabling teams to work more efficiently and adapt to complex, fast-changing clinical environments.

You need to focus on it when:

  • The Trusts annual operational plan is shared.
  • You want to improve QRV well led score for aligning objectives.
  • Team members focus on different or competing tasks, often unaware of how their work connects to others.
  • Team members show low initiative or accountability, unsure of what success looks like.
  • Work done lacks focus or alignment with strategic priorities.
  • There is little reflection on what’s working or not, no clear metrics to track progress.

Top tips:

  • Review the Annual Operational plan, what it means in your division and for your team.
  • Co-create the objectives with your team based on the priorities and your team data.
  • Focus on 5 or 6 clear, agreed, challenging and aligned objectives.
  • Make sure they are measurable.
  • Use SMART or OKR principles to write your objectives.

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

Objective:
Deliver whole person care through improved holistic assessments and care coordination.

Key Results:

  • Complete integrated care assessments for 90% of patients with complex needs by September 30, 2025.
  • Conduct monthly multidisciplinary case reviews with social care and mental health teams.
  • Train 100% of district nurses in whole person care principles by August 31, 2025.

Why is it important?

Promote Equitable Patient Care: Ensure that all patients receive fair, respectful, and culturally competent care, regardless of their background, taking steps to reduce health inequalities.

Build a safer, more inclusive workplace: Improve morale, reduce turnover, and enhance collaboration—especially for staff from underrepresented backgrounds who may otherwise face microaggressions or bias.

You need to work on it when:

  • ALL teams need to have an objective in place which supports intentional action towards anti-racism. This should be focussed on both your team experience via developing understanding and within your wider the service.
  • Our data and health inequalities data continues to show we need to do more to deliver equitable patient care and build a safer, more inclusive workplace. It is always therefore a requirement within your team canvas discussions to set, review and refresh your team objective regarding anti racism.

Top tips:

  • Review your team and service diversity data – what are your priorities.
  • Collaborate with the team – what areas are important to team members.
  • Make sure it is measurable
  • Use SMART or OKR principles to write your objectives.

Team based activities:

Coming soon....

What good looks like:

Inclusive Practice: By Q4 2025, review and update all patient-facing materials to ensure they are culturally inclusive and free from biased language, with input from diverse community representatives.

OR

Team inclusion: By Q4 develop team knowledge on anti racism to foster an anti-racist culture within the clinical team.

Key Results:

  • Conduct 3 facilitated team discussions on anti-racism and unconscious bias by November 2025.
  • All team leaders to attend L4B – Inclusion leadership development training
  • Implement 2 new team practices or protocols based on team discussions

Why is it important?

Strengthen Team Cohesion: Operating principles promote our trust CARES values and develop trust, accountability, and collaboration by setting clear expectations for how team members work together, particularly when under pressure.

Ensure Consistency and Safety: They provide a shared framework for decision-making and behaviour, developing a safe and inclusive restorative just culture.

You need to focus on it when:

  • Team members hesitate to speak up, challenge ideas or admit mistakes.
  • Team disagreements escalate or linger due to lack of shared norms for resolving issues.
  • Staff Survey feedback shows low scores in areas like collaboration, clarity or trust.
  • New team members struggle to understand “how things are done” or feel supported.

Top tips:

  • Use real scenarios and discuss recent challenges and how clearer principles could have helped.
  • Use “We will” statements and be specific.
  • Link principles to our CARES values .

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

  • We will take ownership of our actions and follow through on commitments.

  • We will regularly reflect on our work and seek opportunities to learn, adapt and improve.

Why is it important?

Improves Team Collaboration: When everyone understands their responsibilities and those of others, it fosters trust, accountability, and smoother teamwork.

Reduces Errors and Confusion: Clear roles help prevent overlap, miscommunication, and gaps in care, ensuring safer and more efficient patient outcomes.

You need to focus on it when:

  • When new team members join or roles change or presence of overlapping responsibilities.
  • When QRV or PACE feedback highlights role confusion.
  • There is conflict or miscommunication in the team around expectations.
  • Low engagement or unclear ownership of tasks.

Top tips:

  • Start with a ‘who’s who’ board  for both formal and informal team roles.
  • Listing up to date team members and roles on your canvas is great but don’t forget to have team based conversations around role clarity when you refresh your canvas if this is important in your team.

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

  • For the team canvas document you may just wish to list names and roles – we know space is limited.
  • You may want to add individual informal team strengths e.g. ‘door is always open’, ‘the team tech guru’.

Why is it important?

Delivers Safer, More Coordinated Care: Interdependent teamwork ensures that we collaborate effectively, reducing errors and improving patient outcomes.

Supports Complex, Coordinated Care: They enable seamless integration of diverse expertise to manage in a complex and specialised environment, leading to quicker, more informed decisions and enhanced holistic care.

You need to focus on it when:

  • When you rely on other teams but don’t know who to go to or responsibilities between teams are blurred.
  • If collaboration with other teams feels strained or inefficient.
  • Changes to key stakeholders, or increase in cross-functional projects.
  • The team is operating in isolation, disconnected from other teams with overlapping goals or dependencies.

Top tips:

  • Think about who your team work closely with or who your teams work may impact upon.
  • Use the team canvas library to understand the goals from other teams you work closely with – how do your goals and purpose align?

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

  • List the teams that have the closest relationships to helping you achieve your team objectives.

 

Why is it important?

Drives Meaningful Improvement: Defining and measuring impact helps teams focus on outcomes that truly matter- like patient safety, experience, and clinical effectiveness.

Supports Accountability and Learning: It enables teams to track progress, learn from results, and make informed decisions to continuously enhance staff engagement, wellbeing and patient care.

You need to focus on it when:

  • There is loss of motivation or engagement and a sense of “just doing tasks” without understanding the impact.
  • Difficulties in prioritising work, time and resources are spent on low-impact activities.
  • There’s a lack of recognition or visibility of the team’s impact.

Top tips:

  • Think about your purpose statement and objectives.
  • Consider the impact, value to others and how you will know you’re making a difference.

e.g. If your purpose statement is…

"We exist to improve patient outcomes by ensuring timely, coordinated care across services. Our work supports the commitment to integrated care and health equity."

Your impact may be…

"Our efforts reduce duplication, improve communication between services, and ensure patients receive the right care at the right time. We contribute to safer transitions between hospital and community care."

And the Value to Others…

"Patients benefit from smoother care journeys. Partner teams gain clarity and support in delivering joined-up services. The system benefits from reduced delays and better resource use."

Team based activities:

What good looks like:

Capture on your team canvas the measures you are tracking and the aspired impact e.g:

  • Reductions in delayed discharged.
  • Improved patient satisfaction scores.
  • Improved staff survey responses for team working.
Upload your Team Canvas
Guides and useful information

Find out more about...

Our operational plan
PACE 365