New NHS Staff Standards - a message from Sean Leahy.

Message from Sean Leahy, Chief People and Culture Officer

This week, NHS England introduced six new NHS Staff Standards, setting clear expectations for how organisations support, value and protect their people. At Mersey Care, they provide a helpful framework for building on the progress already being made across leadership, culture, wellbeing, inclusion, flexibility and staff safety.

Our focus over the coming year will be to:

• Strengthen leadership and manager development
• Improve how we support wellbeing, workplace adjustments and inclusion
• Build on our anti-racism and culture for belonging programmes
• Develop a stronger Trust-wide approach to sexual safety
• Enhance violence prevention and support for staff following incidents
• Improve flexible working data and equitable access.

Recent reviews, including the NHS Staff Survey, highlighted strengths in inclusion, teamwork, line management and compassionate culture, alongside areas for improvement. These findings are shaping our priorities and support implementation of the standards.

The new standards bring this work together in one framework, helping us understand what is working well, where we need to improve and how we can continue to support our colleagues across the Trust.

This reinforces our ambition to be a workplace where everyone feels safe, valued, respected, supported and able to thrive, in line with our CARES values and commitment to perfect care.

We all have a role in bringing this to life. Colleagues are encouraged to familiarise themselves with the standards, use the resources available and join conversations about culture, inclusion, wellbeing and safety. Further updates and opportunities to get involved will be shared through our newsletters.

Thank you for everything you do to make Mersey Care a welcoming and supportive organisation for our colleagues, patients and service users.

Together we are Mersey Care.