Freedom to Speak Up Guardian | Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Posting date:	09 July 2025
Salary:	Not specified
Additional salary information:	£59,490 - £66,239 pro rata Incl HCAs
Hours:	Part time
Closing date:	08 August 2025
Location:	London, SW109NH
Company:	Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust
Job type:	Contract
Job reference:	7324085/289-CR-29

Summary

Interviews will be conducted on Monday, 11th August and Friday, 15th August more details will be emailed shortly once you have been shortlisted for the interview.

The Freedom to Speak Up Guardian is a high profile and influential role, which is integral to promoting a culture of transparency to support the delivery of compassionate patient care of the highest quality whilst ensuring the safety of our patients, the wellbeing our workers, contractors, students on placement, and visitors.

As a Freedom to Speak up Guardian you will operate independently, impartially, and objectively, whilst working in partnership with individuals and groups throughout the organisation, including the senior leadership team. The post holder will regularly seek guidance and support from and, where appropriate, escalate matters to, bodies outside the organisation. Excellent communication skills are crucial for this role; you will be required to communicate sensitively and effectively with a wide range of colleagues.

As Freedom to Speak up Lead Guardian, the post holder will work across all roles and levels within the Trust to gain exposure to the organisation and how it operates. The post holder will be required to work as part of the wider, regional and national forums relevant to Speaking up and Culture change. The post holder will provide a focus on ensuring that colleagues feel able to speak up without fear of reprisal in order to protect patient safety, improve the experience of workers and promote learning and improvement.

The post holder will, support the trust executive team to adhere with directives from the National Guardian Office, regularly support and contribute to the national and regional Freedom to Speak Up Guardian network by providing peer-to-peer support and other requirements as needed.

Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust is one of England's top-performing and safest trusts. We operate two main acute hospital sites—Chelsea and Westminster Hospital and West Middlesex University Hospital—along with award-winning clinics across North West London.

Our nearly 7,500 staff care for a diverse population of 1.5 million, providing full clinical services, including maternity, A&E, and children’s services, plus specialist HIV and sexual health clinics. The Care Quality Commission rates us 'Good' in safety, effectiveness, care, and responsiveness, and 'Outstanding' in leadership and resource use.

We continually invest in our facilities, including a £30m expansion of critical care at Chelsea and Westminster and an £80m Ambulatory Diagnostic Centre at West Middlesex.

We are committed to equal opportunities and believe that diversity drives innovation and excellence. As part of our dedication to equity, we actively welcome applications from individuals from the global majority, veterans and underrepresented communities. We value the unique perspectives and experiences that diverse teams bring and are committed to creating an environment where all voices are heard, respected, and empowered to succeed."

If you haven’t heard from us within three weeks of the closing date, your application was likely unsuccessful. Employment is subject to a six-month probationary period.

Some roles may require weekend shifts at multiple sites.

Ensure that groups that may face particular barriers to speaking up have knowledge and support they need and issues raised are used as opportunities for learning and improvement.

· Develop strong and open working relationships with the CEO, NEDs and other Executive Directors, with direct access to senior leaders as required.

· To be responsible to facilitate compliance with the National Guardian Office (NGO) guidance as required by the NHS standard contract.

· Prepare reports for Trust Board and People Committee, and present in person as per the national guidance to provide assurance on the delivery of the speaking up agenda.

· To be responsible to facilitate compliance with the National Guardian Office (NGO) guidance as required by the NHS standard contract.

· Prepare reports for Trust Board and People Committee and Acute care Collaborative, and present in person as per the national guidance to provide assurance on the delivery of the speaking up agenda.

· Ensure the collation and submission of FTSU case data to the National Guardian’s Office on a quarterly basis, in line with stated deadlines.

· Provide confidential and impartial advice and support to people who speak up without fear of reprisal, escalating concerns where appropriate. The post holder will be party to highly sensitive information.

· Take immediate appropriate action when matters that people are speaking up about indicate that safety and quality may be compromised.

· Support the development of a working environment and open culture which fosters high morale and commitment among all colleagues and promotes their well-being. Organise sessions, events and other activities to promote the speaking up agenda.


This advert closes on Friday 25 Jul 2025