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Appraisals
Agenda for Change

This page has been designed to answer as many common questions about appraisal as possible. If you would like some more support please contact HRapprsisals@bedfordhospital.nhs.uk who will be able to arrange a meeting with one of our cross site team.

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The Trust has adopted a values based appraisal. Values-led organisations have more engaged staff, better teamwork and better patient experience. And this results in safer care with better outcomes for patients.

 

Values should be 'lived’ – in everyday work, not just ‘laminated’ – in posters on the wall. One way of doing this is to ensure values are included in regular and annual development discussions. More than 750 NHS leaders, managers, clinicians and frontline staff were involved in co-creating this new approach to values-based reviews.

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In this work they told us:

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  • People do their best work: ​

  • when they are involved in setting their goals, objectives and development pathway, and supported to deliver them

  • when they can use their strengths and learn from successes, as well as improving and learning when things didn’t go well

  • Great performance needs regular conversations, as well as an annual review

  • So that managers get to know their people, and so employees always know how they are doing: what they are doing well, as well as where they can improve

(A Kind Life, 2022)

  • What is statutory and mandatory training?
    Statutory Training: Refers to training that the Trust must provide to employees as required by law. Staff must maintain compliance with this training and undertake refresher training as per the renewal period recommendations. Requirements may vary depending on the staff group/ job role of each employee. Mandatory Training: Training that the Trust has identified as compulsory; must be undertaken by staff, these requirements are underpinned by guidelines and recommendations. Requirements may vary depending on the staff group/ job role of each employee. Staff are required to undertake a number of training modules. The refresher periods range from every 1 - 3 years depending on recommended guidelines for the topics.
  • Why am I required to complete statutory and mandatory training?
    All staff are required to complete a range of training as part of the terms and conditions of employment. Statutory and mandatory training ensures that staff are up to date with any legislative changes and internal processes and procedures. Statutory and mandatory training ensures staff competencies are up to date for their own and patient safety. For all staff employed under the Agenda for Change Terms and Conditions, all statutory and mandatory training must be up to date at the time of their pay progression review.
  • What is the Core Skills Training Framework (CSTF)?
    The Core Skills Training Framework (CSTF) is a framework for use by healthcare organisations to help guide and standardise the focus and the delivery of key statutory and mandatory training skills. The intention in providing this framework is that healthcare organisations will be able to review their current arrangements for defining and delivering training in relation to the identified subject areas, and through the adoption of the framework align their approaches. Where such alignment is undertaken it should then have benefits for healthcare organisations in ensuring consistent approaches, promote quality and delivery of training which, through the use of learning outcomes, should be more educationally focused and valued. It is expected that the adoption of this framework will help promote organisational and system wide efficiencies by encouraging the health sector to recognise training which meets recognised standards and in doing so help contribute towards preventing unnecessary duplication. Bedfordshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is aligned to the CSTF, this enables the organisation to accept and transfer training data from other NHS organisations and ensure high standards of training for all staff.
  • What are the Trust reporting categories for statutory and mandatory training?
    The Trust has 2 main reporting categories Core and Advanced. Staff should be compliant with training on both training dashboards.
  • What is the Trusts statutory and mandatory training compliance target?
    The Trust has set a statutory and mandatory training compliance of 90%. Information Governance has a Trust target of 90%
  • How do I know what training topics I need to complete for my job role?
    You can find out what training topics are required for you by logging into your ESR portal and selecting "my compliance". You can also view the full requirements list below:
  • Can I transfer training I have completed at another Trust?
    Training can be transferred from one NHS organisation to another via ESR. This is named an Inter Authority Transfer (IAT). The training team will accept any training that is compliant with the CSTF.
  • I am a manager, how do I view my teams training compliance?
    Managers will receive a monthly compliance dashboard of both the core and advanced dashboards. This will be sent via e-mail. Managers should disseminate this information to the relevant parties in their team. If managers are not receiving their monthly dashboards they should contact ComplianceReports@bedsft.nhs.uk with their cost centre so that they can be added to the distribution list.
  • How often do I need to refresh my training?
    Each training topic has its own renewal period. You can check the renewal period on ESR, the monthly compliance dashboard or view the training matrix here:
  • How can I complete statutory and mandatory training?
    You can complete statutory and mandatory training in a number of ways including: Face to face Virtual E-Learning Workbook
  • Will I be given protected time to complete my statutory and mandatory training?
    Yes, all staff should be given protected time to attend statutory and mandatory training. Staff should also be given time to attend virtual training sessions and complete any e-learning modules. It should not be expected that staff complete training in their own time or complete additional hours. If staff do complete statutory and mandatory training in their own time, it should be agreed beforehand with the manager to how this may be compensated for example receive additional pay bank payment/ overtime or time in lieu.
  • I am struggling to use ESR, where can I get support?
    The Training and Learning Team has created user guides to support you with ESR navigation and using e-learning, these can be found here There is also a range of educational tutorials on the ESR website: Employee Self Service - ESR EDUCATION - ESR Education - NHS Electronic Staff Record If you would like 1:1 support you can contact the team on the email below: BEDFORD: e-learning@bedfordhospital.nhs.uk LUTON: e-learning@ldh.nhs.uk
  • I am a manager and I would like support with my teams training compliance, how can I get help?
    Managers that would like support with their teams training compliance can book a meeting with the Mandatory Training Officer (MTO). The MTO will be able to provide support to you and your team and create a training recovery plan. Please contact Jay Sidhu on Jay.Sidhu@bedsft.nhs.uk
  • I don't think my training compliance is correct, how can I update my records?
    If you have completed the training but this is not reflected on your training record please contact a member of the training team and they will investigate this for you: BEDFORD: educationcentrebookings@bedfordhospital.nhs.uk LUTON: trainingbookings@ldh.nhs.uk
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