Staff and volunteers who work for Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust have been instrumental in developing four new Values for the organisation to signal its commitment to doing the right thing by patients and its workforce.

The Values – Respect, Compassion, Professionalism and Teamwork – were unveiled today and replace the list of “Promises” which fed into the organisation’s strategic objectives and overall Vision.

Richard Beeken, Trust Chief Executive, said: “We’ve listened to feedback and know that the Promises didn’t resonate with staff; they’ve told us this through a number of focus groups led by Staff Engagement Lead Simon Johnson. Few colleagues can recall the Promises and many don’t believe they are truly embedded.

“The Trust Board agreed that the Promises needed to be refreshed and turned into Values chosen by the people who work here. Evidence shows that the most engaged workforces choose their own values which become embedded by staff being recruited against them and appraised through them so that they are lived and breathed by everyone.

“Staff were asked to come up with four single words that they felt represented their true values and what it should mean to work for our Trust and over the last few months Simon and colleagues have been reviewing all suggestions; going back to areas to seek further clarity where necessary. When the final list of suggestions was drawn up staff were then invited to vote on their favourites.

“We have revealed these Values across the organisation today and the hard work now starts to work together to ensure they become embedded.”

Simon added: “I’d like to thank everyone across all levels of the Trust who played their part in helping to develop our Values which should ultimately influence and shape the culture of the organisation.

“The Values also give us the opportunity to regularly acknowledge and celebrate the efforts our teams in the hospital and community services make towards embedding these.”