Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust – which runs Newark Hospital, Mansfield Community Hospital and King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton – has made the shortlist for the Acute or Specialist Trust of the Year at the 2020 Health Service Journal (HSJ) Awards. This is the second consecutive year the Trust has made the shortlist in the ultimate recognition for healthcare providers.

Sherwood has also been shortlisted in the Staff Engagement category and as a partner organisation in the Connected Notts shortlisting in the Digitising Patient Services Initiative category.

The recognition comes during a year of continued improvement and success for Sherwood whilst caring for patients and colleagues during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In May 2020 the Care Quality Commission announced the rating for King’s Mill Hospital improved to Outstanding, making it the only hospital in the Midlands with that rating. Newark Hospital improved to Good overall and Sherwood kept its overall rating of Good. The Trust was also proud to have the best staff engagement score for an Acute Trust in the Midlands for the second year running.

Sherwood has also been shortlisted in two other categories, including the Staff Engagement category that rewards the progress the Trust has made in making the Trust an outstanding place to work. The Trust is also a partner organisation in Connect Notts, which is shortlisted for its work on embedding the NHS app in Nottinghamshire and driving digital innovation.

Chief executive Richard Mitchell said: “We have all had a challenging 2020 and to find out we have been identified again as being one of the best trusts in the NHS is important recognition. I am so proud of the team at Sherwood. We have made huge progress and know we have further to go.

“I know we do not get everything right, but I believe most patients here receive outstanding care and the majority of colleagues enjoy working here. I am particularly proud that over the last year we have built on our mental health support for patients and colleagues, as it is clear people need these now more than ever.

“We very much look forward to presenting our achievements to the HSJ judges virtually and taking the opportunity to celebrate the things we are most proud of.”

Director of culture and improvement Emma Challans added: “I am so proud we have also been shortlisted for the Staff Engagement award for our “Sherwood: A Great Place to Work; A Great Place to Thrive” work. We have done a lot of work around supporting colleagues and putting clear mechanisms in place to ensure colleagues get the help and support they need both from their direct line management and the wider organisation as a whole.

“From setting up rooms for our Intensive Care Unit teams to have some down time in, to setting up our den areas which provide a wealth of support and wellbeing knowledge for our colleagues, we have managed to create a supportive and inclusive environment for all. I look forward to presenting to the HSJ and discussing what we have achieved.”

Now in its 40th year, the HSJ Awards is the largest annual benchmarking and recognition programme for healthcare. Through a rigorous, fair and transparent judging process the awards produce a roll call of the best organisations, teams and people in the NHS and the wider health sector.

The full list of finalists for the 2020 HSJ Awards can be found on https://awards.hsj.co.uk/2020-shortlist.

Winners will be selected ahead of the ceremony, which will take place virtually in March 2021.