Yesterday, 110 staff from West Midlands Ambulance Service came together to celebrate the work of the Trust’s six staff networks along.
Alongside this, the valuable role the peer to peer Staff Advice and Liaison Service, Chaplaincy Service and Freedom to Speak Up play in supporting staff, improving services and helping staff develop their careers was highlighted.
The event in Brierley Hill heard from each of the Networks:
- Women’s
- Disability Carers & Advocates
- ONE – ethnic minority
- Military
- Proud – LGBT+
- Student
The Trust was also pleased to hear from Randeep Kular (Co-Chair APNA Midlands) and Bev Baker (Fairness Improvement Lead at University Hospital Birmingham.
In the afternoon colleagues took part in workshops on topics such as Creating a Wellness Recovery Action Plan and Self Discovery, while staff could also take part in Reiki sessions.
The day was organised by Manjeet Malhi, the Trust’s Health & Wellbeing Manager. She said: “The work that our Networks do is so important to so many staff. The support, training and shared lived experiences really does make a difference.
“We heard repeatedly how having the Networks really is making a difference to colleagues; they give colleagues a sense of belonging and somewhere they can talk to like minded individuals about work and personal matters. It was also great to hear how the Networks are working together to share those experiences.”
Bev Baker, said: “Staff Networks play a key part in any organisation developing itself so that individuals feel included and it also reduces stigmas”:
Sonia Bhattle, Vice Chair of the Women’s Network, said: “One of our key focuses over the last year has been to focus on women’s health issues, but our work goes much further than that:
Disability, Carers and Advocates Network Chair, John Eames, said: “We need to get away from the view that disabilities are only visible; many are not, but by making reasonable adjustments, we can benefit from so many staff who might otherwise not work for us:
ONE Network Co-Chair, Keeling Hutton, said: Our aim is to tackle diversity and inclusion issues and ensure people in all of our communities see that there is a role for them within this organisation:
Tim Atherton, who is Chair of the Military Network, said: “With over 2 million veterans in the UK, they are a significant cohort of our patients. We are in a unique position to play a key part in ensuring they get the care they need:
PROUD Network Chair, Ash Deakins, said: “As someone who was bullied for my sexuality, working for WMAS has made me feel like I am at home. I want to ensure that we ensure other staff feel the same:
Our newest Network represents Students and other learners. Co-Chair Raul Anton Gutierrez said: “Students are the future of the Service. By ensuring we help them develop their careers, we can ensure we have engaged and dedicated staff:
All, staff, students, and volunteers have access to our peer to peer support group, the Staff Advice and Liaison Service. Co-ordinator Elaine Weaver said: “Last year we helped over 750 staff with a wide variety of concerns both work and home life related:
In an organisation with over 7,000 staff, making sure staff feel able to speak up about concerns is vital. Freedom to Speak up Guardian Pippa Wall and Lucy Butler say the Trust has made significant progress over the last two years, but we have further still to go:
The meeting also heard from two of the Trust’s Chaplains, Imam Mohammed Asad and the Rev Steve Bentham. Steve said: “We were gifted with one mouth but two ears, so we feel we can offer something different by providing a listening ear to people whether they have faith or not:
Ends.