IHEEM, together with our colleagues at HEFMA, are now working closely with NHS England & NHS Improvement to ensure that during these current challenging times all our personal and affiliate members are provided with weekly national updates on the key areas affecting efm healthcare services.
Below are this week’s key messages from the national NHS Estates Team for your information. Please email any questions or comments you have on any of the items below to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net or follow the links where provided.
07/05/2021
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
https://forms.office.com/r/7DqP49MK2Y
We all look forward to life returning to more normality with the current situation continuing to improve. However, we as a profession need to ensure that we remain as safe as possible which will help to support the NHS as it increases the pace at which it returns to BAU. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Publications
The updated Waste Management SOP was published on 29 April and can be accessed at the following link;
We are still working through the various questions which were raised during the webinar about the new National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness on 29 April 2021. The resulting FAQs document will be shared once it has been finalised. We are also trying to resolve some technical issues with the recording of the webinar and will advise on this in the near future.
NHS Premises Assurance Model (PAM)
As set out in the NHS Standard Contract (Service Conditions 17.9) completion of the NHS PAM is required by all NHS trusts annually. Previously this has been provided as a spreadsheet;
https://www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-premises-assurance-model/
From 2020-21 onwards, a new online system has been developed to support this. The national NHS Estates and Facilities Team has recently e-mailed invitations and guidance to the lead contacts at NHS trusts to access the system. All NHS provider trusts must complete their NHS PAM by 23 July 2021.
We are in the process of arranging webinars on a trust type basis. These are expected to take place during the week commencing 17 May and we will be sending the invitations in the next few days.
For comments, questions and feedback on the NHS PAM please e-mail nhsi.nhspremisesassurancemodel@nhs.net and mark it for the attention of Michael Bellas.
Better Business Case Training
NHS England and NHS Improvement have been accredited by APMG International to provide Better Business Case training across the NHS. Further details on how to access this support can be found at;
NHS England and NHS Improvement | APMG International (apmg-international.com)
Chef of the Year
We are now expecting to launch this in the very near future. Further details will be provided in the next update. Please watch out for these details.
Please follow the national NHS Estates and Infrastructure team on twitter @EstatesNHS
NHS England and NHS Improvement National Estates Team: Collaboration Hub
The Collaboration Hub is a protected space for local NHS estates and facilities teams to access key information as well as to collaborate and to share ideas and successes. Access to the Collaboration Hub for individuals from local NHS estates teams can be arranged by e-mailing nhsi.efmportalsubmissions@nhs.net
Thank You
Our thanks to all of those working in estates and facilities for all that you in maintaining the NHS estate, facilitating patient care as well as supporting the ongoing response to COVID-19. The service could not function without you.
29/04/2021
Congratulations: Reusable Gowns Project
A massive well done to the team which developed and managed the rollout of the reusable gowns. The Reusable Gowns Project won the Judges’ Choice Team Award for its response to the shortage of PPE at this year’s Government Property Awards!
Philip Shelley, Emma Brookes and Laura Hooper from the national NHS Estates and Facilities Team accepted the award at the ceremony on 27 April 2021.
National Publications
The new National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness document was published on 26 April. It has so far been e-mailed to chief executives at provider trusts and CCGs as well as all listed estates and facilities contacts. The document is currently being finalised by the NHSE/I Web Content Team so that it can also be available online. The links to this will be provided next week.
Our thanks to all those who attended the national webinar on 29 April where over 350 individuals took part. There was good engagement with lots of questions tabled. A Q&A document will be provided along with the slides in the next week or so.
A further update to the Waste Management SOP has been cleared for publication. Further information on this, including the link, will be provided next week.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
https://forms.office.com/r/5EQtyCSQ8Z
We all look forward to life returning to more normality with the current situation continuing to improve. However, we as a profession need to ensure that we remain as safe as possible which will help to support the NHS as it increases the pace at which it returns to BAU. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
Estates and Facilities Online Forum (on-demand sessions and feedback)
We hope you enjoyed the recent on-demand sessions which we have shared. This week we would like to focus on the session which was led by Prerana Issar, Chief People Officer at NHS England and NHS Improvement. You can access the session via the below:
Prerana stressed the importance of the estates and facilities community to the effective running of the NHS, noting also the vital role played in responding to the COVID-19 pandemic.
To help with the planning for future events it would be appreciated if you could spare a few minutes to complete this short survey following the forum;
The forum survey is open until Friday 30 April. Many thanks to those who have already submitted their feedback via this route.
Government Property Month
John Simpson and Mark Fisher from the National Oxygen Programme, along with Adrian Eggleton (National NHS E&F Team Operational Lead) represented the team at a fringe event for the Cabinet Office’s Government Property Month on 28 April. The team outlined their work in support of the COVID-19 response and the lessons learned. Thanks to Adrian, John and Mark for taking this on and doing the team proud.
21/04/2021
Welcome Back
We hope you will have managed to benefit from a break during the Easter holiday period.
Apologies that this is the first update since the end of March. Our intention was to restart these updates following the Easter break during the week commencing 12 April. However, non-urgent communications were paused for a week to mark the period of mourning in the run up to the funeral of the Duke of Edinburgh.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
https://forms.office.com/r/cim3HdPCcA
We all look forward to life returning to more normality with the current situation continuing to improve. However, we as a profession need to ensure that we remain as safe as possible which will help to support the NHS as it increases the pace of which it returns to BAU. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Publications
We are pleased to confirm that a number of our documents have now cleared the NHS England and NHS Improvement publications process. Arrangements are now being finalised which will see the following document published in the near future; National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness, an updated Waste Management SOP, Performance of Healthcare Cryogenic Liquid Oxygen Systems – mitigating the effects of current and future pandemic demand, as well as four technical standards and guidance documents.
Look out for the further details which will follow including the arrangements for national webinars.
We are hoping that the new National Standards of Healthcare Cleanliness document will be published early in the week commencing 26 April. In support of this we are hoping to focus the next national webinar (29 April at 11am) on this document. If you would like to attend this webinar please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood.
2020/21 ERIC
The latest collection was launched on 14 April and will remain open until 1 July 2021. This is a mandatory collection which NHS trusts required to comply with under the terms of Section 259 of the Health and Social Care Act 2012. In addition, the NHS Standard Contract also requires compliance with this collection in the manner and timescale set out.
Backlog Maintenance
As a result of the total cost to eradicate backlog maintenance increasing by £2bn in the 2019-20 ERIC return, the validation process for the following metrics has undergone a review and new methodology will be in place for this year’s collection.
- Investment to reduce backlog maintenance (T03_08)
- Cost to eradicate high risk backlog (S04_01)
- Cost to eradicate significant risk backlog (S04_02)
- Cost to eradicate moderate risk backlog (S04_03)
- Cost to eradicate low risk backlog (S04_04)
Trusts are required to fully populate the above metrics by 30 April 2021. At this point, the data for these metrics will be extracted and an in-depth validation process will begin. This will include engagement by subject matter experts in the National Estates and Facilities Team to discuss the values submitted and where appropriate, how these were derived.
The remainder of the ERIC 20-21 collection will need to be submitted by 1 July 2021, with any adjustments to the above metrics to be inputted before this final deadline.
Further information is available in the latest news and data sections of the Collaboration Hub. This includes a short video which will be of interest to those responsible for compiling the ERIC data in NHS trusts.
Government Property Month
Members of the National Oxygen Programme are also leading on a fringe event (28 April at 1pm) as part of the Government Property Month. This will be an opportunity to outline their work in support of the COVID-19 response and the lessons learned. The event is free to attend and open to all – please see the link below to register;
Estates and Facilities Online Forum (on-demand sessions and feedback)
We hope you enjoyed the recent on-demand sessions involving Edward Argar MP, Minister of State for Health and the panel discussion of the Impact of COVID-19 and lessons learned, including what this means of Net Zero Carbon and the New Hospital Programme.
The following sessions involving Simon Corben’s overview and the panel discussion on Next Generation Estates Strategies, including delivering the Long Term Plan through ICSs, Primary Care and Disposals can now be accessed via the following links;
NHS E & I National Estates & Facilities Forum Welcome and Update
NHS E & I National Estates & Facilities Forum Next Generation Strategies
We appreciate Jo Fox had some technical issues during this presentation so a summary of her points can be found here: Primary Care Estates Overview
To help with the planning for future events it would be appreciated if you could spare a few minutes to complete this short survey following the forum;
The forum survey will now remain open until Friday 30 April. Many thanks to those who have already submitted their feedback via this route.
31/03/2021
Message from Simon Corben
As we all gear up for the Easter break, I would like to express my thanks again to all members of the estates and facilities profession for your hard work and dedication. The position around COVID-19 continues to improve as the National Vaccination Programme moves forward at pace.
We have come a long way since the turn of the year when the latest national lockdown was introduced to support the response to the peak of the second wave. As we see an improvement to the situation and the gradual lifting of the restrictions, I do hope that you and your families will be able to benefit from some valuable downtime, to rest and recover, and to come back refreshed as we increase our focus around rebuilding back towards business as usual.
Thank you for all that you do to ensure the effective running of estates and facilities which is crucial to patient care in the NHS. Please also take care to make sure that you and your families remain safe.
Estates and Facilities – “Talking Heads” Videos
We recently shared several short personal videos featuring a wide variety of roles across the estates and facilities spectrum. The week we would like to highlight Claire Igoe, Head of Environment Sustainability at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust.
Please do share these with your colleagues and if using social media, tag in the national team @EstatesNHS
There are plans in place to film some further roles and we look forward to sharing those with you as soon as they are available.
Estates and Facilities Online Forum (on-demand sessions and feedback)
We are pleased to be able to begin sharing the links to the individual sessions at the NHS England and NHS Improvement on-line estates and facilities forum. This week we are focussing on the sessions involving Edward Argar MP, Minister of State for Health and the panel discussion of the Impact of COVID-19 and lessons learned, including what this means of Net Zero Carbon and the New Hospital Programme.
These sessions can be accessed via the following links;
Health Infrastructure Plan Refresh
Impact of COVID and lessons learnt
To help with the planning for future events it would be appreciated if you could spare a few minutes to complete this short survey following the forum on 16 March;
Click here to complete the survey
The forum survey will remain open until Friday 16 April. Many thanks in advance for your help and support with this.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
Click here to complete the survey
While the situation continues to improve, it remains as important as ever for those healthcare workers who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of patients, to remain safe themselves. This is especially applicable to the estates and facilities profession. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
NHS Hospital Car Parking
Julian Kelly, Chief Finance Officer at NHS England and NHS Improvement, has written to the NHS on 23 March 2021 (click here to view letter). This has been cascaded to Chief Finance Officers and Directors of Finance at NHS trusts and foundation trusts as well as Regional Directors and Regional Directors of Finance.
The letter confirms the continuing commitment to free hospital car parking for staff during the current COVID-19 pandemic. It also outlines the Government’s commitment to providing free hospital car parking to those in greatest need as well as setting out the definitions for those who will be covered by this commitment.
NHS Estates and Facilities Teams will wish to be aware of this latest communication on this issue. Any queries on this should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marked for the attention of Michael Bellas and Gill Donachie.
Government Property Month
We are delighted to confirm that we are actively taking part in this year’s event and have been shortlisted for multiple awards that showcase the work of the Estates and Facilities profession. We have been shortlisted in the following awards areas;
• Sustainability champion – Hospital Reusable Gowns Programme: National Response to the shortage of PPE,
• Project of the year – Mobilisation of the Nightingales and the role of the ProCure22 framework,
• One Team Award – Patient Management in Primary Care: Local Response to COVID-19 and
• People’s Choice Award – Music for Wellbeing Angela Kennedy.
Members of the National Oxygen Programme are also leading a fringe event (28 April at 1 pm) where they will outline their work in support of the COVID-19 response and the lessons learned. This event is free to attend and open to anyone, click here to register for this event:
National Estates and Facilities Team – Questionnaire
The questionnaire in relation to the national NHSE/I Estates & Facilities Team has been reopened to allow a further opportunity for this to be completed in case you were unable to do so earlier in the year. This should only take a few minutes to complete and will shape future engagement with local estates and facilities teams.
Click here to complete the questionnaire
National Webinars
There was a good turnout for the recent national webinar on Backlog Maintenance and ERIC reporting on 24 March. Unfortunately, there were some technical difficulties on the day which prevented even more members of the profession from joining. We are planning to run a further repeat session on this subject on 19 April at 2 pm and hope to confirm this in the next few days.
Please also hold the date for a further national webinar which is scheduled for 29 April at 11 am. The subject area will be finalised very soon.
Please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood and Tom McHugh if you would like any further information on these, or if you have ideas for future subject areas for inclusion.
23/03/2021
Estates and Facilities Online Forum
We are aiming to share the links to the individual sessions from the on-line forum which took place on 16 March. These will be shared once we have the necessary agreement from those who spoke at this event via this weekly update and online.
Our thanks once again to all those who attended and took part. The feedback has been really positive and we look forward to planning future events of this nature.
Expert Hospital Food Panel – final call for you to get involved
NHS England and NHS Improvement is looking for a group of dynamic individuals with a real passion for food to support the delivery of excellent patient care. Following the publication of the Secretary of State’s Independent Hospital Food Review in 2020, it was announced that an expert panel would be created to progress and monitor the recommendations of the review.
We have already seen incredible interest in this opportunity, please register your interest now if you would like to be considered.
Please visit NHS England » Expert hospital food panel for more details on how to apply before 5 pm on Friday 26 March 2021.
NHS Hospital Car Parking
Julian Kelly, Chief Finance Officer at NHS England and NHS Improvement, has written to the NHS on 23 March 2021 (please see the enclosed letter). This has been cascaded to Chief Finance Officers and Directors of Finance at NHS trusts and foundation trusts as well as Regional Directors and Regional Directors of Finance.
The letter confirms the continuing commitment to free hospital car parking for staff during the current COVID-19 pandemic. It also outlines the Government’s commitment to providing free hospital car parking to those in greatest need as well as setting out the definitions for those who will be covered by this commitment.
NHS Estates and Facilities Teams will wish to be aware of this latest communication on this issue. Any queries on this should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marked for the attention of Michael Bellas and Gill Donachie.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
While the situation continues to improve, it remains as important as ever for those healthcare workers who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of patients, to remain safe themselves. This is especially applicable to the estates and facilities profession. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Webinars
The next national webinar on Backlog Maintenance and ERIC reporting will take place on 24 March at 11:30 am.
Invitations have already been sent to estates and facilities directors/teams. However, if you would like further information or to request an invitation then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood and Tom McHugh.
Virtual Contract Management Network Event
The DHSC Commercial Capability and Supplier Management Team is holding a Virtual Contract Management Network Event. It will feature talks on the latest commercial activities in the health family, provide commercial updates, learning and help build a network of contract managers.
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone involved in contract management to better understand the commercial skills and capabilities that are available across the health family. This invitation is extended to estates and facilities teams. It would be great for local NHS teams to be well represented at this event.
The virtual event is scheduled for Wednesday 31 March from 1 pm to 4 pm. If you are interested please keep this time free and contact amy.dietrich@dhsc.gov.uk for further information, or to request inclusion on the invitation list.
17/03/2021
Estates and Facilities Online Forum – THANK YOU
Thank you to all those who attended our online forum on 16 March. This was a fantastic, well-attended day with great speakers throughout and excellent input from the estates and facilities profession.
All of the sessions will be available soon on-demand and we expect to confirm the details very soon.
We will be issuing a feedback form in the next few days which will be sent to those who registered/attended. It would be appreciated if you could complete what will be a short feedback form that will support our planning for future events. This will also include a link to the national NHS Estates and Facilities Team questionnaire which has been reopened for a further short period of time. This will take a few minutes to complete and your response to the questionnaire will be extremely useful in helping us to shape the way in which we work with the profession going forward.
Estates and Facilities – “Talking Heads” Videos
We are really pleased to share with you a number of short personal videos. These include a range of different roles within estates and facilities such as catering, cleaning, engineering, apprentice, sustainability, waste management and EFM management.
The videos can be downloaded here: Estates Videos – Google Drive
We intend to feature these roles individually over the coming weeks. Our hope is to also develop videos for other roles in the near future. We would welcome your feedback.
Our thanks to the team at the Manchester University Foundation Trust for their help in facilitating this.
Expert Hospital Food Panel – your opportunity to get involved
NHS England and NHS Improvement is looking for a group of dynamic individuals with a real passion for food to support the delivery of excellent patient care. Following the publication of the Secretary of State’s Independent Hospital Food Review in 2020, it was announced that an expert panel would be created to progress and monitor the recommendations of the review.
We’re seeing massive interest in this opportunity, please register your interest as quickly as possible
There are 9 places on the panel which include the roles of chef, catering manager, clinician, nurse and dietary expert. The opportunity is open to staff at all levels and the project will run for 2 years.
Expressions of interest should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marked clearly for the attention of Emma Brookes & Phil Shelley. These should be received no later than 5 pm on Friday 26 March 2021.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
While the situation continues to improve, it remains as important as ever for those healthcare workers who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of patients, to remain safe themselves. This is especially applicable to the estates and facilities profession. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Webinars
Over 1,000 estates and facilities colleagues joined the February programme of webinars facilitated by the national team. We are grateful for the positive engagement and if there are subject areas which you would like to see covered in the future then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilties@nhs.net marking for the attention of Tom McHugh and Linda Hood.
The next national webinar on Backlog Maintenance and ERIC reporting has been scheduled for Wednesday 24 March at 11:30 am.
Invitations have already been sent to estates and facilities directors/teams. However, if you would like further information or to request an invitation then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood and Tom McHugh.
Virtual Contract Management Network Event
The DHSC Commercial Capability and Supplier Management Team is holding a Virtual Contract Management Network Event. It will feature talks on the latest commercial activities in the health family, provide commercial updates, learning and help build a network of contract managers.
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone involved in contract management to better understand the commercial skills and capabilities that are available across the health family. This invitation is extended to estates and facilities teams. It would be great for local NHS teams to be well represented at this event.
The virtual event is scheduled for Wednesday 31 March from 1 pm to 4 pm. If you are interested please keep this time free and contact amy.dietrich@dhsc.gov.uk for further information, or to request inclusion on the invitation list.
10/03/2021
Estates and Facilities Online Forum – ONE WEEK TO GO
The agenda and registration arrangements for this exciting event remain open. Speakers on the day include; Edward Argar MP (Minister of State for Health), Prerana Issar, Sandra Easton, Simon Corben, Fiona Daly, Adrian Eggleton and Craig McWilliam.
We are really pleased to see that Emily Lawson will be providing the closing address. Emily is the NHS Chief Commercial Officer who is currently heading up the COVID National Vaccination Programme and her responsibilities also include estates and facilities.
NHS E & I Estates & Facilities Agenda – you will also be able to register from this link as well.
It is great to see the really high level of interest in the forum which continues to grow by the day. All of the sessions will be available “on-demand” following the event. As well as being free to attend, the forum has also been CPD certified.
Thanks to all those members of the estates and facilities community who have submitted questions for Edward Argar MP (Minister of State for Health). Further questions to the minister are still welcome and if it is not possible to answer on the day they will be addressed following the event. Any further questions should continue to post to nhsi.estatesandfacilties@nhs.net marking for the attention of Tom McHugh and Sophie Shemwell.
Expert Hospital Food Panel – your opportunity to get involved
NHS England and NHS Improvement is looking for a group of dynamic individuals with a real passion for food to support the delivery of excellent patient care. Following publication of the Secretary of State’s Independent Hospital Food Review in 2020 it was announced that an expert panel would be created to progress and monitor the recommendations of the review.
We’re seeing massive interest in this opportunity, please register your interest as quickly as possible
There are 9 places on the panel which include the roles of chef, catering manager, clinician, nurse and dietary expert. The opportunity is open to staff at all levels and the project will run for 2 years.
Information about this was also cascaded to the NHS via Amanda Pritchard’s “Leader’s Bulletin” on 5 March.
Expressions of interest should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marked clearly for the attention of Emma Brookes & Phil Shelley. These should be received no later than 5 pm on Friday 26 March 2021.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your continued engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
While the situation continues to improve, it remains as important as ever for those healthcare workers who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of patients, to remain safe themselves. This is especially applicable to the estates and facilities profession. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Webinars
Over 1,000 estates and facilities colleagues have joined the recent national webinars facilitated by the national team. We are grateful for the positive engagement and if there are subject areas which you would like to see covered in the future then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilties@nhs.net marking for the attention of Tom McHugh and Linda Hood.
The next national webinar on Backlog Maintenance and ERIC reporting has been scheduled for Wednesday 24 March at 11:30 am.
Invitations have already been sent to estates and facilities directors/teams. However, if you would like further information or to request an invitation then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood.
Virtual Contract Management Network Event
The DHSC Commercial Capability and Supplier Management Team is holding a Virtual Contract Management Network Event. It will feature talks on the latest commercial activities in the health family, provide commercial updates, learning and help build a network of contract managers.
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone involved in contract management to better understand the commercial skills and capabilities that are available across the health family. This invitation is extended to estates and facilities teams. It would be great for local NHS teams to be well represented at this event.
The virtual event is scheduled for Wednesday 31 March from 1 pm to 4 pm. If you are interested please keep this time free and contact amy.dietrich@dhsc.gov.uk for further information, or to request inclusion on the invitation list.
03/03/2021
Estates Online Forum
The agenda and registration arrangements for this exciting event have now been launched. Speakers on the day include; Edward Argar MP (Minister of State for Health), Prerana Issar, Sandra Easton, Simon Corben, Fiona Daly, Adrian Eggleton and Craig McWilliam. It is great to see the high level of interest in the forum and the number of registrations to date.
Click here to see the full agenda
Please note that all of the sessions will be available “on-demand” following the event. As well as being free to attend, the forum has also been CPD certified.
We are grateful for the questions which have been submitted so far in relation to the minister’s session. Edward Argar MP is keen to answer as many questions as possible on the day and will follow up after the event with any others. As you can appreciate the minister’s diary is extremely busy so it will not be possible for this session to overrun. It would be helpful for further questions to be posted to nhsi.estatesandfacilties@nhs.net by close on Monday 8 March (marking for the attention of Tom McHugh and Sophie Shemwell).
Expert Hospital Food Panel – your opportunity to get involved
NHS England and NHS Improvement is looking for a group of dynamic individuals with a real passion for food to support the delivery of excellent patient care. Following the publication of the Secretary of State’s Independent Hospital Food Review in 2020, it was announced that an expert panel would be created to progress and monitor the recommendations of the review.
There are 9 places on the panel which include the roles of chef, catering manager, clinician, nurse and dietary expert. The opportunity is open to staff at all levels and the project will run for 2 years.
Expressions of interest should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marked clearly for the attention of Emma Brookes & Phil Shelley. These should be received no later than 5 pm on Friday 26 March 2021.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We would like to thank you for your engagement with the weekly surveys to date. The responses are really important in helping NHS England and NHS Improvement as an organisation to shape how we engage with our healthcare workforce.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
While we are continuing to see an improving situation, it remains as important as ever for those healthcare workers who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of patients, to remain safe themselves. This is especially applicable to the estates and facilities profession. Please continue to make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
National Webinar: Backlog Maintenance and ERIC
A national webinar on Backlog Maintenance and ERIC reporting has been scheduled for Wednesday 24 March at 11:30 am.
Invitations have already been sent to estates and facilities directors/teams. However, if you would like further information or to request an invitation then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood.
Virtual Contract Management Network Event
The DHSC Commercial Capability and Supplier Management Team is holding a Virtual Contract Management Network Event. It will feature talks on the latest commercial activities in the health family, provide commercial updates, learning and help build a network of contract managers.
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone involved in contract management to better understand the commercial skills and capabilities that are available across the health family. This invitation is extended to estates and facilities teams. It would be great for local NHS teams to be well represented at this event.
The virtual event is scheduled for Wednesday 31 March from 1 pm to 4 pm. If you are interested please keep this time free and contact amy.dietrich@dhsc.gov.uk for further information, or to request inclusion on the invitation list.
24/02/2021
Estates and Facilities Forum – BOOK NOW, FREE to attend
The agenda and registration arrangements for this exciting event have now been launched. Speakers on the day include; Edward Argar MP (Minister of State for Heath), Prerana Issar, Sandra Easton, Simon Corben, Fiona Daly, Adrian Eggleton and Craig McWilliam.
Click here to see the full agenda
You will need to register for each session individually and it would be helpful if you could confirm the sessions of interest to you as soon as possible. Please note that all sessions will be available “on demand” following the event.
We are really fortunate that Edward Argar MP has been able to commit to this event and he is looking forward to engaging with the estates and facilities profession. However, it will not come as a surprise to learn that his time on the day will be constrained by his other ministerial commitments. It would be appreciated if any questions to him could be posted in advance. If there is insufficient time to answer all of the questions these will be followed up a soon as possible afterwards.
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
The level of infections and hospital admissions are continuing to move in the right direction and we will hopefully see a return to a more normal way of life over the coming months.
As the estates and facilities profession we must continue to remain safe. In doing so please make use of the resource materials which are available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. These can be accessed from the Collaboration Hub.
As the COVID-19 vaccine roll out to health and social care workers in England continues, please find attached some further communication content for you to share with your colleagues and teams. This includes a quote card from Gilly Lee together with an infographic.
The following might also be useful;
• Professor Jacqueline Dunkley-Bent – encouraging colleagues to get vaccinated when invited
• Dr Farzana Hussain – GP determined to put in personal call to every at-risk patient yet to take up COVID-19 jab offer
• Dr Nikki Kanani – NHS reveals blueprint for tackling BAME vaccine hesitancy
To further support the vaccine rollout to the workforce we are seeking regular feedback to help us understand the current position from your perspective.
We would like to thank you for your engagement with the weekly surveys to date. These responses are pivotal in informing us as to how we can better engage with our healthcare workforce. This will allow us to monitor and improve the impact of our communications to maximise their effectiveness.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
Click here to access the survey
Thank you for your help and support in this area.
Procurement Partners/Catering Procurement
We are aware that a number of NHS trusts have been approached by Procurement Partners, requesting data and asking for trusts to sign up to a procurement framework. There are a number of procurement solutions for NHS caterers to choose from and there is generally freedom for NHS trusts to make their own decisions on national and local frameworks.
A letter has been communicated which was written by the chair of the food review with an alignment to Procurement Partners. This organisation is not aligned with the national procurement model, and in retrospect, it is acknowledged that the chair of the food review should remain impartial so that NHS caterers can make their own choices as set out above
National Webinar: ERIC
A national webinar on ERIC has been scheduled for Friday 26 February at 1pm. This will include an overview of the recently published 2019/20 ERIC, potential changes to the definitions for the 2020/21 ERIC as well as productivity and efficiency, including case studies.
Invitations have already been sent to estates and facilities directors/teams. However, if you would like further information or to request an invitation then please e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Linda Hood.
Virtual Contract Management Network Event
The DHSC Commercial Capability and Supplier Management Team is holding a Virtual Contract Management Network Event. It will feature talks on the latest commercial activities in the health family, provide commercial updates, learning and help build a network of contract managers.
This is a fantastic opportunity for anyone involved in contract management to better understand the commercial skills and capabilities that are available across the health family. This invitation is extended to estates and facilities teams. It would be great for local NHS teams to be well represented at this event.
The virtual event is scheduled for Wednesday 31 March from 1pm to 4pm. If you are interested please keep this time free and contact amy.dietrich@dhsc.gov.uk for further information, or to request inclusion on the invitation list.
Operational Pressures
Pressures are still being experienced in waste management. Please refer to the previous updates which have been provided (along with the latest standard operating procedure) and help to ensure that all waste is appropriately segregated.
NHS trusts still need to complete the daily waste management survey (Monday – Friday). This is critical to us as it enables the national NHS Estates and Facilities Team to provide system wide assurances to both the DHSC and Civil Contingencies Secretariat. Any queries about the survey, or waste management more generally should be sent to england.wastemanagement@nhs.net
Management of Oxygen Services
We would like to thank the estates and facilities teams for your help and support over the past few weeks. Previous updates made reference to the pressure on services. We are grateful to all colleagues for enacting the required actions and taking on board the key messages from the guidance. We are now in a much more stable position as a result of the positive engagement we have seen.
17/02/2021
COVID-19: General Update and the National Vaccination Programme
We are seeing positive news in terms of reduced levels of confirmed infections and hospital admissions. The national Vaccination Programme also goes from strength to strength. This is welcome news on both fronts.
However, we must not lose sight of the critical message which we have been sharing over the past few weeks in that estates and facilities teams work hard to ensure that patients remain safe. At the same time, we must not lose sight of the need to ensure that our people all remain safe.
We have developed a pack which is available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up. Please review and share this information with your teams.
Prerana Issar, NHS Chief People Officer, is also taking a close interest in the health and wellbeing of estates and facilities teams. This applies especially to the rollout of the COVID-19 vaccines where weekly surveys have been introduced to help monitor and maximise the effect of the communications in place to ensure their effectiveness. These responses from health and care staff are extremely important in helping to inform NHS England and NHS Improvement of current perspective from the front line.
A link to this week’s survey is below and again we would be grateful for your responses – the survey will take less than five minutes to complete.
Estates Forum
This is scheduled for 16 March and good progress is being made with the arrangements which we will be launching soon. We can confirm that the agenda for the day will include Prerana Issar, NHS England and NHS Improvement Chief People Officer, at 10:30am and Edward Argar, Minister of State for Health, at 11:30am. There will also be sessions involving Simon Corben, Sandra Easton, Adrian Eggleton, Craig McWilliam and Fiona Daly. Please hold the date now. The agenda and registration arrangements will be launched imminently.
Health and Care Bill – White Paper
The Health and Care 2021 White Paper has now been published:
https://www.gov.uk/government/speeches/the-future-of-health-and-care
Estates and facilities services are not specifically mentioned, but capital funding and the NHS Food report are. Further information on the White Paper more generally will be shared on the Collaboration Hub soon.
With regard to hospital food, the White Paper is supportive of the recommendation arising from the Independent Review of NHS Hospital Food in putting hospital food standards on a statutory footing. For the first time this will deliver mandatory minimum standards for the provision of good hydration and nutrition in the NHS. The White Paper also proposes to grant the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care powers to adopt secondary legislation that will implement the national standards for food across the NHS.
NHS England and NHS Improvement – Estates Team Questionnaire
This remains open until Friday 19 February. We have kept the survey as short as possible and can be completed in a matter of minutes. It is really important for us to obtain as much feedback as possible from the estates and facilities community. We will share the outcome and action plan on the Collaboration Hub in due course. The questionnaire can be accessed at the following link;
The NHS Estates and Facilities team thank you in advance for taking the time to help us shape how we best support the profession going forward. If you have not yet completed, please try and find a few minutes to complete in the next couple of days.
Operational Pressures
These remain as previously reported and are outlined below.
Waste Management
The standard operating procedure for waste management was updated and published by NHS England and NHS Improvement on 18 January 2021. This document has been updated to reflect the National Vaccination Programme which is now well underway.
The document can be accessed from the following link;
The key message in this area is to ensure that all waste is appropriately segregated. Further messaging on this issue was shared via the NHS England and NHS Improvement Health and Care Leaders Update bulletin on 27 January 2021.
NHS trusts need to complete the daily waste management survey (Monday – Friday). This is critical to us as it enables the national NHS Estates Team to provide system wide assurances to both the DHSC and Civil Contingencies Secretariat. The informational also enables the team to help and support much earlier in the process as appropriate. Any queries about the daily waste management survey should be sent to england.wastemanagement@nhs.net
Oxygen
We need to ensure that the key messages recently shared previously on the Collaboration Hub regarding the management of oxygen services continue to be enacted by estates teams locally. This will help to manage the current pressures and as ever the members of the National Oxygen Team will be on hand to advise and support as necessary.
Our thanks to the profession for your help and support in this area where we are now seeing a continuing improvement in the situation.
Scrubs
Support is still needed to ensure that scrubs are not being hoarded and returned to the laundry system in a timely manner. It is also important to ensure that scrubs are not disposed of either and that they are returned for laundering. This situation has become more challenging over the past week. We are now seeing genuine issues and problems in the laundry system. Any help and support which estates and facilities teams can provide here will be greatly appreciated.
09/02/2021
COVID-19: National Vaccination Programme
The national Vaccination Programme continues at pace and it is really important for estates and facilities teams at the front line to get vaccinated when invited to do so. Estates and facilities teams work hard to ensure that patients remain safe. We must not lose sight of the need to ensure that our people all remain safe.
There is a wealth of material which is centrally available in relation to the vaccination programme. We have developed a pack which is available now for use by estates and facilities teams to encourage staff vaccination take-up, click here to download a copy.
NHS England and NHS Improvement – Estates Team Questionnaire
This remains open until Friday 19 February. We have kept the survey as short as possible and can be completed in a matter of minutes. It is really important for us to obtain as much feedback as possible from the estates and facilities community. We will share the outcome and action plan on the Collaboration Hub in due course. The questionnaire can be accessed at the following link;
The NHS Estates and Facilities team thank you in advance for taking the time to help us shape how we best support the profession going forward.
Online Estates and Facilities Forum – 16th March
This is scheduled for 16 March and good progress is being made with the arrangements which we will be launching soon. We can confirm that the agenda for the day will include Prerana Issar, NHS England and NHS Improvement Chief People Officer, at 10:30 am and Edward Argar, Minister of State for Health, at 11:30 am. Please hold the date and look out for registration arrangements for the individual sessions.
Operational Pressures
These remain as previously reported and are outlined below.
Waste Management
The standard operating procedure for waste management was updated and published by NHS England and NHS Improvement on 18 January 2021. This document has been updated to reflect the National Vaccination Programme which is now well underway.
The document can be accessed from the following link;
The key message in this area is to ensure that all waste is appropriately segregated. Further messaging on this issue was shared via the NHS England and NHS Improvement Health and Care Leaders Update bulletin on 27 January 2021.
NHS trusts need to complete the daily waste management survey (Monday – Friday). This is critical to us as it enables the national NHS Estates Team to provide system-wide assurances to both the DHSC and Civil Contingencies Secretariat. The informational also enables the team to help and support much earlier in the process as appropriate. Any queries about the daily waste management survey should be sent to england.wastemanagement@nhs.net
Oxygen
We need to ensure that the key messages recently shared previously on the Collaboration Hub regarding the management of oxygen services continue to be enacted by estates teams locally. This will help to manage the current pressures and as ever the members of the National Oxygen Team will be on hand to advise and support as necessary.
Our thanks to the profession for your help and support in this area where we are now seeing an improvement in the situation.
Scrubs
Support is still needed to ensure that scrubs are not being hoarded and returned to the laundry system in a timely manner. It is also important to ensure that scrubs are not disposed of either and that they are returned for laundering. This situation has become more challenging over the past week. We are now seeing genuine issues and problems in the laundry system. Any help and support which estates and facilities teams can provide here will be greatly appreciated.
02/02/2021
COVID-19: National Vaccination Programme
We can see from reports in the media about the excellent progress which continues to be made with the COVID19 National Vaccination Programme. As we have noted previously, it is important for the estates community to remain safe as we continue the battle against the pandemic.
With this in mind, Prerana Issar, Chief People Officer at NHS England and NHS Improvement, met with a group of individuals from the estates community who were also from a BAME background. This was a positive meeting aimed at seeing how we can work together to ensure we remain safe and informed about COVID-19 and the vaccination programme. The estates profession works hard to ensure that patients remain safe. We must not lose sight of the need to ensure that we all remain safe.
There is a wealth of material which is centrally available in relation to the vaccination programme. We are developing this into a specific pack which we can make available via the HEFMA and IHEEM channels. This will be available soon.
LSE Students: Food and Behaviour Change Project
As part of the net-zero drive around food and drink the national NHS Estates Team is linking with a team from the London School of Economics which is working with the NHS to help achieve its net-zero commitment. We are specifically looking into the issue of food plate waste within hospitals, and how the NHS can reduce the amount of food wasted. In order to understand the variations and dynamics within hospitals, we are looking to engage with a range of NHS trusts to gain insights, best practice and identify the key areas for change. NHS trusts which are interested in taking part should e-mail nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net marking for the attention of Phil Shelley who will then follow up.
NHS England and NHS Improvement – Estates Team Questionnaire
We appreciate the responses by those local estates teams which completed the questionnaire. However, we know that NHS estates teams have been considerably busier than usual for obvious reasons and might not have had time to complete the questionnaire ahead of the deadline. For those estates teams and members of the profession who would still like to complete the questionnaire, it will remain open until close on Friday 19 February and can be accessed via the following link;
It would be really helpful to us if as many estates teams as possible take a few minutes to complete and return the survey. We will review the responses after the survey closes and will provide feedback and proposed actions.
Operational Pressures
These remain as previously reported and are outlined below.
Waste Management
The standard operating procedure for waste management was updated and published by NHS England and NHS Improvement on 18 January 2021. This document has been updated to reflect the National Vaccination Programme which is now well underway.
The document can be accessed from the following link;
The key message in this area is to ensure that all waste is appropriately segregated. Further messaging on this issue is expected to be shared via the NHS England and NHS Improvement Health and Care Leaders Update bulletin.
It is also worth being aware of all NHS trusts completing the daily waste management survey. This has been reduced from being required 7 days a week to 5 days per week. It is really important for all NHS trusts to routinely complete and submit this information. This is critical to us as it enables the national NHS Estates Team to provide system-wide assurances to both the DHSC and Civil Contingencies Secretariat. The informational also enables the team to help and support much earlier in the process as appropriate. Any queries about the daily waste management survey should be sent to england.wastemanagement@nhs.net
Oxygen
We need to ensure that the key messages recently shared on the Collaboration Hub regarding the management of oxygen services continue to be enacted by estates teams locally. This will help to manage the current pressures and as ever the members of the National Oxygen Team will be on hand to advise and support as necessary.
Our thanks to estates teams for their help and support in this area which is now helping to make a difference.
Scrubs
Support is still needed to ensure that scrubs are not being hoarded and returned to the laundry system in a timely manner. It is also important to ensure that scrubs are not disposed of either and that they are returned for laundering. This situation has become more challenging over the past week. We are now seeing genuine issues and problems in the laundry system. Any help and support which estates teams can provide here will be greatly appreciated.
25/01/2021
A Message from Simon Corben: COVID-19
The latest data indicates that the peak in terms of new COVID-19 infections may now be starting to pass. This is being reflected in the number of confirmed infections and the R number in some areas. This is welcome.
However, the pressure on our hospitals, in particular the number of inpatients receiving care for COVID-19, and consequently estates and facilities services, remains high.
As a profession, we will continue to play a key role in both responding to the pandemic as well as managing the business as usual activities associated with the NHS estate.
I would also like to remind estates directors and their leads to be able to assure themselves that all their staff – including porters, ancillary staff, and agency and contract workers – are following national infection prevention control guidance from Public Health England. My thanks to you and your teams for all that you continue to do in maintaining estates and facilities services in the current climate and supporting patient care. Please stay safe and I look forward to meeting up with you in person in due course.
NHS England and NHS Improvement Estates Forum
This will take place on 16 March as an online forum via IHEEM’s platform. The agenda will be finalised in the near future and will include discussions on the estates workforce, net zero carbon, New Hospitals Programme, disposals, next generation estates strategies and delivering the Long Term Plan through primary care.
Confirmed speakers include; Simon Corben, Fiona Daly, Adrian Eggleton and Craig McWilliam. Both Edward Argar, Minister of State for Health and Prerana Issar, Chief People Officer at NHS England and NHS Improvement will also be speaking at this forum.
Invitations to the forum will be issued in the near future. In the meantime please note the date in your diaries and look out for the invitation to register.
Operational Pressures
We continue to see operational pressures in the areas of; waste management, oxygen services and scrubs. Please visit the Collaboration Hub for the key messages which have been posted recently on these issues and note the urgent actions which are required.
18/01/2021
COVID19
The weeks ahead are expected to be extremely challenging for the NHS as it continues to respond to the latest wave in the pandemic. The estates profession will continue to play a key role in the response, both nationally and locally.
With this in mind, we cannot lose sight of the importance of continuing to look out for each other and our teams more generally. This includes ensuring that all our colleagues have access to emotional support when it is needed as well as having the opportunities to take annual leave which we do appreciate will be difficult in the current climate.
This also extends to ensuring that estates directors and their leads are able to assure themselves that all their staff – including porters, ancillary staff, and agency and contract workers – are following national infection prevention control guidance from Public Health England; and sharing regular reminders and advice on core information that all staff need to know on good hand hygiene, guidance on social distancing and Covid-19 safety in the workplace. It is vital to ensure that responsibility is taken locally for educating all staff, irrespective of whether or not they are providing support on an in-house basis, or through an outsourced arrangement. Close working with local communications and infection control leads to ensure rapid and widespread message dissemination can help support this.
Operational Pressures
Oxygen
We need to ensure that the key messages as outlined by Simon Corben recently on the management of oxygen services continue to be enacted by estates teams locally. This will help to manage the current pressures and as ever the members of the National Oxygen Team will be on hand to advise and support as necessary.
Our thanks to estates team for their help and support in this area which is helping to make a difference. IHEEM COVID-
The online IHEEM COVID-19 Oxygen Usage Tool is now available via the IHEEM Knowledge Portal, link provided below:
Scrubs
Support is still needed to ensure that scrubs are not being hoarded and returned to the laundry system in a timely manner. It is also important to ensure that scrubs are not disposed of either and that they are returned for laundering. This situation has become more challenging over the past week. We are now seeing genuine issues and problems in the laundry system. Any help and support which estates teams can provide here will be greatly appreciated.
Waste Management
The standard operating procedure for waste management has been updated and is now available from the NHS England and NHS Improvement website. This document has been updated to reflect the National Vaccination Programme which is now well underway.
The document can be accessed from the following link;
The document has been cascaded directly to Directors of Estates and Waste Managers. Please review the document and take action as appropriate. The key message in this area is to ensure that all waste is appropriately segregated.
We will be hosting a national webinar on this issue on 29 January at 1 pm. This will be led by Fiona Daly. Directors of Estates and Waste Leads at NHS trusts will be included in the invitation for this. Any enquiries about this webinar should be sent to nhsi.estatesandfacilities@nhs.net and marked for the attention of Linda Hood.
Secretary of State Hospital Food Review – Expert Panel
A separate post will follow this week to both IHEEM and HEFMA seeking applications for membership of the Expert Panel which will be established in the near future.
There are 9 places on the panel: 2x chef, 2x catering manager, 2x clinician, 2x nurse, 1x dietary expert. The successful candidates will be from either a hospital catering or clinical background with a passion for ensuring that food served to patients, staff and visitors is nutritious, safe and presented in an appetising way.
Panel members will be required to dedicate 4 days per month to the project which will include meetings, visits, papers and workshops and will need to be flexible and adapt to fast-moving and changing priorities and deadlines. The project will run for 3 years and is an exciting opportunity to be involved in the shaping of healthcare food services for the 21st century.
11/01/2021
COVID-19
There continues to be enormous pressure across the system and this is impacting inevitably across all of the estates profession. First and foremost it is vital that we all continue to look out for each other, ensuring that we are as supportive as possible as well as signposting to additional areas of support. We all need to remain safe and healthy.
It is also important for estates teams to note the recent reminders which have been issued, and to ensure that appropriate actions are in place which will help to alleviate pressures wherever possible on;
- Oxygen services – noting the key actions which Simon Corben has requested estates teams to enact
- Clinical waste – ensuring that waste is appropriately segregated and
- Scrubs – ensure that these are not being hoarded which is causing problems in the laundry supply system.
Key messages on these areas can be found in the Collaboration Hub.
Impact of COVID-19 on Colleagues from a Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) Background
It is recognised that the impact of COVID-19 on colleagues from a Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) background has been disproportionate. We are also aware that these groups may have specific concerns for us to address. A series of roundtable discussions are being scheduled, chaired by Prerana Issar, NHS England and NHS Improvement Chief People Officer. It is vital that the EFM is appropriately represented at these sessions and we are really grateful for your support and the resultant expressions of interest which have emerged from colleagues wanting to be part of these discussions. Thank you.
2019/20 ERIC
The 2019/20 ERIC data was published on the NHS Digital website on 7 January.
We are now in the process of working with the NHS England and NHS Improvement Model Hospital Team so that this latest data can also be reflected in that forum.
Key headlines from the latest data are;
- E&F running costs of £9.74bn and
- This represents an increase of £241m compared to the £9.5bn reported in the 2018-19 ERIC.
The increase can be attributed to; pay inflation for EFM staff, rates payable to local authorities and an increase in the numbers of sites which are now reported on. The number of reported sites increased from 5,718 in 2018-19 to 6,717 in 2019-20 (+17% – 999 sites).
We will be arranging a national webinar for estates teams in the near future to share further details from the 2019/20 ERIC. In the meantime, the data can be accessed at
Secretary of State Hospital Food Review
The Independent Hospital Food Review was published on 26 October 2020. There are a number of key actions which are now being taken forward to support the implementation of the recommendations.
This includes the creation of an expert panel whose key role will be to progress and monitor the recommendations of the review. We are now looking to recruit to this group which will include strong representation from the estates profession. Further details will follow in the very near future.
Letters have also been issued to eight NHS trusts which will form the Exemplary Trust Programme and Hospital Food Network. This group will also support the drive to implement the recommendations following the Secretary of State’s Review of Hospital Food. The trusts which are involved include Ashford and St Peters; East Lancashire; Nottingham University Hospitals; Royal Berkshire; Royal Wolverhampton; Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt; Sheffield Teaching Hospitals; and Western Sussex.