Shortlisted for success, the NHS LSC partnership
L-R: Skills Development Finalists Kay Butterfield,
skills support adviser for the LSC in West
Yorkshire, Wyn Jones, workforce planning
manager, NHS Yorkshire and the Humber, and
Christine Peake, NHS/LSC partnership manager.
The Health Service Journal Awards held in London recently saw the strategic partnership between the NHS and the LSC making its way well up the shortlist. With over 1,000 entrants across 18 categories, the NHS LSC partnership made the tough journey to the sought-after shortlist of the Skills Development category.
As the largest employer in Yorkshire and the Humber, the skills requirements of the NHS have a major effect on the skills profile in the region. The partnership aims to coordinate regional skills development and NHS needs and has led to 850 staff being nominated for level 2 training this year.
Originally set up in West Yorkshire and more recently across Yorkshire and the Humber, the strategic partnership is now set to go national.
NHS support staff have signed up under the Train to Gain service, which enables them to study for new qualifications directly relating to their job role and to perform more efficiently at work.
Margaret Edwards, chief executive of NHS Yorkshire and the Humber, said: "I know that to develop the world class NHS we all want in Yorkshire and the Humber we must invest in proper training for all of our staff. Developing the vocational skills of our support staff will enable us to deliver a better service to people in the region."
Regional director of skills for the LSC in Yorkshire and the Humber, David Hodges, commented: "As the largest employer in the region, the NHS signing up to Train to Gain sets a really good example to other businesses.
"We hope that following our Train to Gain advertising campaign more employers will realise the undoubted benefits a well-trained and skilled workforce can bring, and that the Train to Gain service is a cost-effective and convenient way of offering employees the opportunity to improve their skills."