Job summary
22.5 hours per week, flexible days
The Freedom to Speak Up Guardian (FTSUG) will act as the independent and professional resource for hospice staff and volunteers who raise concerns. Working alongside teams to support the hospices continuing aim to improve openness and transparency within the workplace, and to further promote a listening and learning culture, you will continue to develop a range of mechanisms in addition to established formal processes which actively encourage and enable staff to speak up safely.
Main duties of the job
The Freedom to Speak Up Guardian (FTSUG) will serve in an independent and impartial role, supporting staff and volunteers who raise concerns. They will also lead the development of speaking up arrangements at Ashgate Hospice by identifying best practices and areas for improvement.
You will be responsible for overseeing Ashgate Hospices Freedom to Speak Up activities, ensuring the protection of patient safety and the quality of care, while also enhancing the experience of those working or volunteering for the hospice. This role will promote learning and improvement by supporting individuals in speaking up, addressing any barriers they may face, fostering a positive culture of openness, and using concerns raised as opportunities for learning and organisational development.
About us
Ashgate Hospice is a registered charity that provides compassionate, specialist palliative and end of life care, free of charge, to patients with a life-limiting illness and their families across North Derbyshire. Our values are at the heart of everything we do at Ashgate. They are grounded in our commitment to being the best we can be for our patients and the people who are important to them, and for each other. We are compassionate. We are a team. We are respectful, open and inclusive.
As a valued member of the team, you will have a wide range of training and development available to support your own personal, professional development, opening doors to new career pathways.
Job description
Job responsibilities
To ensure that all staff and volunteers have the capability, knowledge, and skills they need to speak up themselves and to support others to speak up.
To develop training to ensure staff, volunteers and managers at all levels are equipped to enable speaking up, listening up and following up.
To ensure that groups that may face barriers to speaking up are identified and have the knowledge and support they need.
Information from cases raised by people speaking up, and barriers to speak up, is reviewed alongside other intelligence on patient safety, service quality, and used to inform organisational learning and quality improvement
That speaking up policies and processes are inclusive, effective, constantly improved and available to all staff and volunteers
Local measures of the impact of freedom to speak up and the Freedom to Speak Up Guardian role is agreed and used to monitor progress
To support and promote a respectful, compassionate and inclusive workplace culture by living and upholding Ashgate values and behaviours in daily activities ensuring that all staff and volunteers feel valued and heard.
Work closely with the People Services team and the HR Business Partners where required to ensure any aspects relating to people management are appropriately addressed in line with the organisations HR policies and procedures.
Develop an Ashgate Hospice network of freedom to speak up advocates across all teams
Submit quarterly data relating to cases raised within the hospice to the NGO.
Job description
Job responsibilities
To ensure that all staff and volunteers have the capability, knowledge, and skills they need to speak up themselves and to support others to speak up.
To develop training to ensure staff, volunteers and managers at all levels are equipped to enable speaking up, listening up and following up.
To ensure that groups that may face barriers to speaking up are identified and have the knowledge and support they need.
Information from cases raised by people speaking up, and barriers to speak up, is reviewed alongside other intelligence on patient safety, service quality, and used to inform organisational learning and quality improvement
That speaking up policies and processes are inclusive, effective, constantly improved and available to all staff and volunteers
Local measures of the impact of freedom to speak up and the Freedom to Speak Up Guardian role is agreed and used to monitor progress
To support and promote a respectful, compassionate and inclusive workplace culture by living and upholding Ashgate values and behaviours in daily activities ensuring that all staff and volunteers feel valued and heard.
Work closely with the People Services team and the HR Business Partners where required to ensure any aspects relating to people management are appropriately addressed in line with the organisations HR policies and procedures.
Develop an Ashgate Hospice network of freedom to speak up advocates across all teams
Submit quarterly data relating to cases raised within the hospice to the NGO.
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered health or social care professional (A)
- Undertaken speaking up training or similar awareness (A)
Desirable
- Masters level or equivalent qualification in health or social care professional qualification
Experience
Essential
- Evidence of working with multi professional groups and leadership
- Demonstrates a clear understanding of Freedom to Speak Up and is passionate about a speaking up culture
- Evidence of knowledge of local speaking up processes and sources of support and guidance, including escalation processes
- Demonstrates knowledge of processes to escalate potential patient safety and quality issues
- Is able to take action to ensure that all staff have the skills and knowledge they need to enable them to speak up effectively, and to support others to do so
- Visible and accessible to staff, possess one to one communication skills and ability to listen, respond and question appropriately. Understands open/confidential/anonymous approaches and how to manage them
- Demonstrates the ability to develop strong and open working relationships with leadership team and People Services Team and have the confidence to engage in open and honest communication.
Desirable
- Knowledge of wider policy initiatives, and sources of additional support from other organisations, as well as those within individual organisations
- Development and delivery of communication and engagement programmes
- Experience as a FTSU champion
Person Specification
Qualifications
Essential
- Registered health or social care professional (A)
- Undertaken speaking up training or similar awareness (A)
Desirable
- Masters level or equivalent qualification in health or social care professional qualification
Experience
Essential
- Evidence of working with multi professional groups and leadership
- Demonstrates a clear understanding of Freedom to Speak Up and is passionate about a speaking up culture
- Evidence of knowledge of local speaking up processes and sources of support and guidance, including escalation processes
- Demonstrates knowledge of processes to escalate potential patient safety and quality issues
- Is able to take action to ensure that all staff have the skills and knowledge they need to enable them to speak up effectively, and to support others to do so
- Visible and accessible to staff, possess one to one communication skills and ability to listen, respond and question appropriately. Understands open/confidential/anonymous approaches and how to manage them
- Demonstrates the ability to develop strong and open working relationships with leadership team and People Services Team and have the confidence to engage in open and honest communication.
Desirable
- Knowledge of wider policy initiatives, and sources of additional support from other organisations, as well as those within individual organisations
- Development and delivery of communication and engagement programmes
- Experience as a FTSU champion
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
