x CEO Report_March 2025
1.0 National and system update
- I would like to start by acknowledging the news from the government that NHS England will be dissolved and be integrated into the Department for Health and Social Care. Whilst we of course support the principle of prioritising valuable taxpayer monies for front line clinical care, we extend our sympathy for our fellow NHS colleagues who are impacted.
- Significant time and attention is going towards preparing an operational plan for 2025/26 for our Trust as part of the submission by the Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire & Berkshire West Integrated Care Board (BOB ICB). There is no doubt this year’s planning round is the toughest seen for a number of years and will require a level of cost reduction in the space of a year that the organisation has not seen before. 1% of the proposed cost improvement programme will be tied to mutual delivery with the other 2 acute providers in the system. At the time of writing, there are still a significant amount of savings to be identified, but the team are working hard through some difficult decisions. Whilst this gap remains, we have had to introduce a pause to non-clinical recruitment. This is and will remain a really challenging time for our colleagues and we will be focusing all our attention on supporting them. Our principles through planning are to protect core clinical services; ensure we meet our statutory responsibilities; and ensure we do not deviate from our strategic goals.
- At the end of February, the Acute Provider Collaborative (APC) met to consider the year ahead, committing to collaborative working and driving improvements by putting patients at the heart of everything it does. The APC will develop strong partnerships through a purposeful and active confederation of providers, holding the collaborative to account for delivery of shared goals, whilst recognising that members are sovereign organisations. Continuing to focus on the three areas of elective care, clinical services and corporate services, specific priorities for 2025/26 will be agreed, supported by a Charter that clearly articulates expectations. A Prospectus and Charter will be shared with trust Boards in due course for their approval.
- Congratulations to Professor Meghana Pandit, Chief Executive Officer of Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (OUH), who has been appointed Co-National Medical Director for Secondary Care in the NHS Transformation Executive Team for an 18-month secondment effective 1 April. We look forward to working more closely with Simon Crowther, who joined OUH as Deputy Chief Executive Officer in September 2024, who will be Acting Chief Executive Officer for the next 6 months.
2.0 Outstanding care
- Key performance data up to the month of February are presented in the Integrated Performance Report with supporting narrative. I would bring to the Board’s attention the improving performance in our Emergency Department and planned care waiting times, as well as consistently strong performance in our people metrics. Executive Management Committee reviewed an update on cancer activity performance, noting a 36% increase in cancer referrals over the past five years, with only a 7% increase in diagnosed cases. An improvement plan will be overseen by the Cancer Oversight Board, chaired by Raghuv Bhasin as Chief Operating Officer.
- I have often had cause to refer to challenges with some of our estate in these reports. I am pleased this month to share more positive news: the Waddesdon Wing at Stoke Mandeville Hospital has been awarded Best Acute Care Design at the Healthcare Design Awards This development houses our children’s emergency department, maternity outpatient antenatal, and obstetrics and gynaecology outpatient services, and was designed with input from service users by building consultancy, Hunters. The interiors of the children’s emergency department, designed by Art-in-Site, were also shortlisted in the Best Interior Design category.
- At Month 11, we reported a deficit of £4.9m against a planned deficit of £5.0m. We have spent £26.2m of capital monies against a plan of £33.7m – work is underway to meet our full-year capital plan by the end of the financial year. Jon Evans (Chief Financial Officer) will update further through the Month 11 Finance Report.
3.0 Healthy communities
- At its meeting on 28 February, the Buckinghamshire Health & Wellbeing Board endorsed a draft Joint Local Health & Wellbeing Strategy for the county to This is available to view from p105 of the reports pack here. This is an important strategy for residents in Buckinghamshire and aligns with our own Trust objectives for the next few years. The Strategy sets out several key areas of focus, under four principles of working with our communities, joining up care through integrated neighbourhood teams, being evidence- led using data and community insights, and using an equity lens through the existing Opportunity Bucks programme. Following the local elections in May, I look forward to engaging with residents and patients alongside our Buckinghamshire partners on how we will implement this strategy.
- At the time of writing this report, the Care Quality Commission is carrying out a routine inspection into Adult Social Services at Buckinghamshire Council. Raghuv Bhasin and I were interviewed as part of this and I will update further on the outcome of the inspection in my next report.
4.0 Great place to work
- The National Staff Survey results have been published this month, and I would first start by thanking my colleagues for taking the time to complete it – 65% of our organisation responded to the survey, putting us in the top 25% of trusts nationally, and importantly giving us incredibly rich information and data which we can use to inform our future plans. Bridget O’Kelly, Chief People Officer, will update further in the report on this later in the agenda, and the following image summarises some key highlights of note to the Board:
- Since 2022, we have participated in Cohort 1 of the People Promise Exemplar Programme, and I was pleased to read this evaluation of the programme, including a case study of our Trust, a copy of which is included below:
