Bradford District Care NHS Foundation Trust will be thanking local people, including those who use Trust services, people who care for them, and representatives of community and voluntary organisations, who give up their time to contribute to the Trust’s work, on Tuesday 10 December.

The Trust has invited over 40 members of the local community who are involved in Trust work, to a festive afternoon tea at the Bradford Hotel, in recognition of their valuable contribution.

The Care Trust’s Patient Involvement and Experience team works with people from across the Bradford, Airedale, Wharfedale and Craven areas that have chosen to be actively involved in Trust projects.

These people draw on their own experiences of using Trust services to advise and suggest improvements. The Trust uses this valuable feedback when planning developments, to help shape its services to ensure they meet the needs of the community.

There are many ways that members of the community can become involved in Trust work, from developing the new Involvement Strategy which will launch in 2020, to taking part in projects and committee work. Some of the projects that people have been able to contribute to over the last 12 months have included creating written and video resources for patients and carers; assessing hospital buildings and catering services; participating in an action group to continue to develop the Trust’s MyWellbeing College service; and being involved in the recruitment and selection of new Trust Board members and senior staff.

The Care Trust’s Patient Experience Lead, Isla Skinner, said: “The contributions made by the people who get involved with the Trust are invaluable and the Trust’s new vision ‘better lives, together’ goes to the heart of why we want and need to involve people. By working as partners with our staff, we can listen to what really matters to people and benefit from their experience, insights and skills, and together we can make sure we provide the right services, at the right time and place. Equally importantly, it means that the people we serve have a voice in how we deliver care.”

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