'We're not where we want to be' - mental health trust boss

CONCERNS AS ANNUAL SURVEY SHOWS NO IMPROVEMENT IN STAFF MORALE

- By JOSEPH CONNOLLY Local democracy reporter

The entrance to Highbury Hospital in Highbury Vale, Nottingham. Inset, below, Ifti Majid, chief executive of Nottinghamshire Healthcare

(JOSEPH RAYNOR)

DIRECTORS of Nottinghamshire's main operator of mental health hospitals have admitted its culture is "not where we want to be" after new staff survey results were poorer than in 2024.

Nottinghamshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust runs Highbury Hospital and Sherwood Oaks in Mansfield, and is among a number of organisations being scrutinised at the Nottingham Inquiry in London for its care of paranoid-schizophrenic triple killer Valdo Calocane before the Nottingham attacks in June 2023.

The trust has published the results of its 2025 staff survey, with only one of nine categories showing an improvement from the previous year. In three of the categories, the average score decreased.

The trends were discussed at a meeting of the authority's bosses on Thursday, March 26.

Presenting the results, Jennifer Guiver, the trust's executive director of people and culture, said: "In terms of the results, we are absolutely not where we want to be. They largely stayed the same."

In the survey, which ran over the autumn period, staff were asked to score from 0 to 10 how much they agree with seven statements.

The statements form the NHS' “People Promise” - a guide as to how the organisation is expected to operate as a whole.

The seven statements are "we are compassionate and inclusive", "we are recognised and rewarded", "we each have a voice that counts", "we are safe and healthy", "we are always learning", "we work flexibly" and "we are a team".

For compassion and inclusivity, safety and health, working flexibly and teamwork, the trust's average scores all equalled those of 2024 - 7.2, 6, 6.6 and 6.8 respectively.