Trust reports, strategies and plans
We publish a number of detailed and informative reports, operational plans and strategies, many of them on a regular basis.
Organisational Strategy - 2023 - 2028
We’re proud to present our ambitious new five-year Organisational Strategy – “If it matters to you, then it matters to us” as we refresh our mission, vision and values for the organisation.
Our strategy is both ambitious and achievable and reflects what patients, communities, staff and partners have told us matters to them.
The strategy helps to ensure everyone in the organisation is working towards the same goals, and resources are being used effectively.
To read the full strategy, click here.
Operational Plan 2024/25
Each year we produce an Operational Plan which identifies the key priorities for our organisation for the immediate 12 months, and outlines how we will measure progress on the agreed priorities, aligned to our longer term Organisational Strategy.
Strategy - plan on page
Our Vision: Our vision is to see the health of local communities improve through partnership working, putting people at the centre and looking to the future.
Our Mission: Our mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of local people and communities through personalised, safe and effective community-based services.
Our Values:
- To get the basics right - For each other, local people and communities.
- To act with compassion and respect - For each other, local people and communities.
- To make a positive difference - For each other, local people and communities.
- To value and develop teamwork - With our partners and within DCHS.
- To value diversity and inclusivity - Of each other, local people and communities.
People at the centre
Outcome: DCHS is a great place to work and experience care.
Strategic indicators:
- Maintain CQC Outstanding rating.
- Friends and Family score.
- Sector lead for staff survey - recommend organisation as a place to work.
Goals:
- Patients and carers experience great care which they actively participate in.
- Everyone is treated fairly, feels valued and that their wellbeing matters.
- Everyone is involved in improvement and feels able to take their ideas forward.
- Everyone feels able to speak up, we listen to and learn from people’s experiences and act on what we hear.
Working in partnership
Outcome: We work together in the best interests of people, no matter what organisation or team we are from.
Strategic indicators:
- Integration index score.
- Staff survey - Teams within this organisation work well together to achieve their objectives.
- Number of integrated pathways, teams, roles we are involved in.
Goals
- Patients and carers experience great joined-up care, no matter how many people or organisations are involved.
- We work in teams centred around patient care rather than organisational boundaries.
- We work with partner organisations on shared goals, processes and systems.
- Service improvements are developed with the people they affect, using their diverse experiences to lead to better solutions.
Healthy communities
Outcome: We improve the health of local communities, particularly for those who experience the greatest barriers to good health.
Strategic indicators:
- Equity of access to underserved populations.
- Ensure we meet requirements to provide social value.
Goals
- We have trusting relationships with local communities to promote good health for everyone.
- Prevention is our starting point, so people stay healthier for longer.
- We have high quality information which we use to make good decisions to improve community health.
- We focus on those who experience the greatest barriers to good health.
Focus on the future
Outcome: We are sustainable and play our part in meeting the future needs of staff, patients and communities.
Strategic indicators:
- Workforce retention.
- Workforce representative of population.
- Financial balance with recurrent savings proportionality.
- Carbon emissions 80%of1990 baseline by 2030.
Goals
- We understand how local communities, patients and staff are changing and are ready to adapt, balancing opportunities and risk.
- We have a sustainable workforce, offering enjoyable, engaging and manageable careers.
- We use money and time well, balancing the requirement to plan for the future against immediate needs.
- We consider the environmental impact of everything we do.
DCHS Board priorities 2024/25
People at the centre
Inclusion and kindness; visibility and engagement; and enabling a culture of innovation and improvement.
Working in partnership
Strategic partnerships that will transform services to do the right thing whilst providing best value.
Healthy communities
Focusing on how we use data and insights to make better decisions.
Focus on the future
Transforming services to ensure long term sustainability.
Operational plan 2024/25
- Doing things, the best way we can (Operational excellence): This means making sure people don’t wait too long to see us, making sure our systems and processes work smoothly for patients and staff, focusing on what’s important to people, and using technology to improve.
- Investing in people: We want to support and develop the amazing people who work for DCHS. We will do this by providing specific and ongoing learning and support programmes and through resilient staffing plans.
- Making sure everyone has the chance to be healthy (Population health and reducing health inequalities): We want everyone to have the chance to be healthy, regardless of background. We will do this by helping people who face challenges, working with communities, and encouraging preventative care.
- Helping people stay healthy in their community (DCHS community transformation): We are working with social workers and primary care to make it easier for people to stay healthy at home and be involved in their own care.
- Working together for you (Empowering partnerships): We are building strong relationships with local communities and partner organisations to make sure everyone gets the best possible care.
- Spending money wisely (Delivery of financial sustainability): We are looking closely at our resources to make sure we spend money wisely. This means reviewing support services, improving existing services, and using our facilities more efficiently.
- Changing how we deliver services (Service reviews and pathway redesign): We are looking to review a number of our services to make them better for the future.
- Modernising our buildings (Transformation of estates): We are planning and building healthcare facilities with the latest technology to meet the growing needs of our community in the future.
Reports
Our Annual Report details key achievements over a specified financial year.
You can now view our latest annual report, which details our performance over the financial year 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024.
This report was a shortened report in line with Government guidance in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
The aim of Quality Account is to share with our community what we have done to improve the quality of care this year and how we intend to do better in the future by working in partnership with patients, carers and other organisations.
Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (DCHS) recognises that every concern or complaint is an opportunity to learn and make improvements.
We understand that handling concerns and complaints effectively matters for people who use our services and they deserve an explanation when things go wrong. We understand people want to know that a meaningful change has been made to prevent something similar happening to anyone else.
We always aim to address concerns and resolve problems quickly and effectively to ensure the satisfaction of all involved. We seek to apologise for any substandard or inadequate care that has been provided and therefore we follow the principles of the duty of candour to complaints.
DCHS and Trade Union regulations
We support and value the work of our trade union and professional organisation representatives, promoting a climate of active co-operation between representatives, leadership teams and staff at all levels to achieve real service improvement, best patient care and our desire to be an employer of choice.
The Covid-19 pandemic necessitated significant changes to partnership working processes both collectively where substantive changes to working practices were rapidly implemented and due to the pausing of the volume of formal individual casework. DCHS and accredited reps worked together in the spirit of the national Staff Partnership Forum guidance and local agreements to progress wide-ranging casework and staff concerns outside of formal process wherever possible, recognising that lack of resolution can result in additional uncertainty and anxiety.
As an organisation we recognise that outstanding practice requires an engaged and valued workforce, and we continue to seek to enhance and maintain these excellent employee relations through early involvement, engagement and intelligence sharing with our trade union partners. This has been particularly true with our Covid-19 pandemic response work.
Facility Time Publication Requirements
We publish details of facilities time carried out by our trade union representatives in line with the Trade Union Regulations 2017 (Facility Time Publication Requirements). This covers duties carried out for trade unions or as union learning representatives in relation to our trust and staff.
In recognition of the additional workloads that have been placed upon our reps this year resulting from the pandemic, including massively increased clinical and frontline responsibilities and changes in ways of working and the redeployment of key team members, the detailed data collation has been amended to enable a fair reflection of the time and commitments they have made but without the arduous need to compile detailed annual figures.
2021/2022
| Number of employees who were relevant union officials during the relevant period | Full-time equivalent employee number | Percentage of time union officials spent on facility time | Number of employees |
|---|---|---|---|
| 12 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1-50% | 9 | ||
| 51-99% | 3 | ||
| 100% | 0 |
Percentage of pay bill spent on facility time
2021/2022
For the previous reporting period (April 2019-March 2020) prior to the Covid 19 Pandemic the Total Hours Spent on Facility Time (Duties and Activities) by the 14 reps active within DCHS was 3,733 hours
Although detailed data has not been collated for 2021/22 evidence would suggest that this figure would be significantly reduced. Evidence to support this includes:
- Reduction in number of active reps (12).
- Impact of the pandemic has led to massively increased workloads for all reps relating to their substantive frontline roles – reducing the amount of time they have been able to commit to TU duties & activities.
- The national SPF guidance which recommended curtailing and streamlining of employee processes and decision making.
- 9 of the accredited reps have frontline clinical or support roles as their primary substantive employment
- Members of the Staff Partnership team have during the pandemic been redeployed to roles both within the pharmacy team for significant periods of time and taken on additional roles away from the TU function – including admin support at vaccination centres, PPE and pharmacy deliveries.
Paid trade union activities
2021/2022
In the year (2019/20) prior to the pandemic this figure was 4.66% - largely comprised of TU Conference attendance and TU regional activities. Using all the evidence above and additional factors such as the wholesale cancellation of conferences, reduction in TU branch regional and national activities, curtailment of Union learn activities and evidence from comparable organisations, this figure for 2020/21 is potentially reduced to 1-2%.
CQUIN stands for Commissioning for Quality and Innovation. CQUINs are quality-related goals which are agreed with our commissioners each year. The goals are linked to a proportion of our income which we receive on achievement of the targets, and the targets support ongoing innovation and improvement in care across our clinical services.
This is a regular report on safe staffing levels and staffing ratios in the trust.
2024
2023
2022
2021
2020
The following workforce equality reports and supporting information can be found on our workforce equality reports can all be found on our Equality and Diversity page.
Strategies
Our five-year Organisational Strategy “If it matters to you, then it matters to us” refreshes our mission, vision and values for the organisation.
Our strategy is both ambitious and achievable and reflects what patients, communities, staff and partners have told us matters to them.
The strategy helps to ensure everyone in the organisation is working towards the same goals, and resources are being used effectively.
For more information, please click here.
The DCHS Clinical Strategy refreshes the DCHS Integrated Business Plan (IBP) which underpinned the organisations journey to becoming an established Foundation Trust.
2019-2020
Plans
Quadruple aim:
- Improve population health.
- Improve patient experience.
- Improve staff experience.
-
Reduce per capita cost of care.
Our priorities:
- Reduce waiting lists, backlogs, and inequalities across core services.
- Meeting our agreed activity targets to deliver services safely and effectively.
- Workforce recruitment, retention and resilience.
- Continued partnership working to improve integration of care.
- Population health and reducing health inequalities.
- Improvement focus on corporate functions.
- Optimisation of DCHS estate.
- Review of bedded care model.
- Supporting System level review of services which have variation in delivery models across Derby and Derbyshire.
- Sustainability review of local authority and NHSE commissioned services.
How?
- Using our resources effectively.
- Utilising digital technology.
- Prioritise staff welfare.
- Transformation and Quality Improvement approach.
-
Use measures which matter.
Outcomes:
- Services achieve required waiting list targets and an improvement in patient flow. Improvement plans are in place where variance from plan is identified.
- Services monitor and achieve agreed activity targets. Improvement plans are in place where variance from plan is identified.
- DCHS achieves targets for recruitment, retention, attendance and staff engagement.
- Identify and progress integration opportunities to improve patient care through partnership working e.g. Team Up and Alliance models.
- Ensure a reduction in inequalities of access for services showing the greatest variation using a health equity audit approach.
- Efficiencies achieved across corporate functions.
- Efficiencies achieved through DCHS estate optimisation.
- Agreement reached for future bedded care model.
- System level reviews of key service pathways completed to reduce variation in delivery models.
- Sustainability review completed and mitigations identified for any delivery risks.
Our 2022-2023 operational plan provides an overview of our vision and priorities for the remainder of the financial year. It provides an overview of our key areas of work and has been developed in response to National NHS Planning Guidance, national drivers for change, JUCD priorities, recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, and our future strategic intentions for our upcoming review of our Organisational Strategy.
It acknowledges we are operating in a challenging and uncertain environment and that there has been limited opportunity for staff to fully recover from the early impact of the pandemic and staff absence rates remain high due to Covid. Our ability to address the waiting list backlogs which arose in services stood down, or reduced, early in the pandemic has been impacted by social distancing and the need for enhanced infection, prevention, and control measures. In addition, the NHS must return to a more balanced financial position at a time when we are seeing a cost increase in essential items including energy, medical supplies, and fuel. For these reasons, we will take a flexible approach to planning this year maximising opportunities for patient needs to be met and staff wellbeing to be prioritised whilst seeking opportunities to transform and improve the way we deliver care.
2022-2023
DCHS Operational Plan - full document
DCHS Operational Plan - plan on a page
2021-2022
DCHS Operational Plan - full document
DCHS Operational Plan - plan on a page
Integrated Community Services - plan on a page
Planned Care & Specialist Services - plan on a page
Health, Wellbeing and Inclusion - plan on a page
People Services - plan on a page
Our operational recovery plan for 2020/21 provides an overview of our planning aims and actions for the remainder of 2020/21 and is aligned to the planning and ambitions of our Joined Up Care Derbyshire (JUCD) partners.
We are committed to ensuring that we work together to improve population health outcomes for the people and communities we serve, as we work to deliver our collective vision to enable people to have the best start in life, to stay well, age well and die well. At the forefront of our system plan are five strategic priorities: place based care, prevention and self-management, population outcomes, system efficiency and system management.
Click here to access the full plan.
Click here to download the summary ‘plan on a page’.
Covid-19 Service Delivery Plan: click here to download a copy of the plan.
During the period of the emergency response, our overall objective is to preserve life, maintain safe services and safeguard patients and staff.
The aim of this document is to provide operational guidance to staff in relation to managing clinical caseloads during the COVID-19 pandemic period, whilst maintaining patient safety.
The objectives are:
- To ensure that the Trust has a local service delivery response based on clinical prioritisation that is in keeping with the latest guidance from NHSE/I (Appendix 1)
- To ensure that as part of the wider health and social care system, the Trust is able to support the reduction in required admission to acute services and is able to expedite discharge from acute services to maintain capacity for those most seriously affected by COVID-19
- To ensure all non-urgent referrals received from primary care are managed by operational services, so that prioritisation of the referral can take place once the COVID-19 emergency response is over.
The principles followed in decision making are:
- On-going case load review to ensure proactive discharge of patients
- Promotion and focus on self-care/self-management
- Engaging families and carers in undertaking appropriate interventions
- Maximising the use of non-face to face consultations using available technology and
- Undertaking home visits and clinic attendance only when ABSOULTLEY clinically necessary.
To be noted, where services both clinical and non-clinical are not prioritised, staff from these areas will be redeployed into areas of need.
Find out how we are looking at all areas of our activity to make us a more sustainable organisation. Our Green Plan replaces the Sustainable Development Management Plan.
Other documents
DCHS was formally authorised as a Foundation Trust by Monitor on 1 November 2014. The key authorisation documentation is:
Authorisation Letter – letter of authorisation from Monitor.
The Constitution – the Constitution is the document that sets out the purpose and the powers of the NHS Foundation Trust and its governance arrangements.
The Trust must remain compliant with the Constitution otherwise there is a risk that it could be in breach of legislation and the conditions as set out in Monitor’s NHS Provider Licence.
NHS Provider Licence – the Provider Licence sets out the conditions issued by Monitor for the Trust to operate as an NHS Foundation Trust from 1 November 2014. The Trust must comply with these conditions.
CQC register Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust to carry out the following legally regulated activities.
Modern slavery statement
This statement is made in accordance with Section 54 of the Modern Slavery Act (2015). It sets out the steps that DCHS has taken and will continue to take to ensure that modern slavery or human trafficking is not taking place within this organisation or those with whom DCHS are affiliated.
Modern slavery is defined as the recruitment, movement, harbouring or receiving of children, women or men through the use of force, coercion, abuse of vulnerability, deception or other means for the purpose of exploitation. It encompasses slavery, servitude, human trafficking, forced labour, sexual exploitation and forced criminality and is a crime under the Modern Slavery Act 2015.
DCHS has zero tolerance to any form of abuse and thus modern slavery is incorporated within both children and adults safeguarding work streams.
DCHS is committed to acting ethically, with integrity, requiring transparency in all our business dealings and putting effective systems and controls in place to safeguard against any form of modern slavery across the NHS and associated sectors.
Through implementation of robust recruitment policies and procedures we ensure that comprehensive checks are in place to negate the likelihood of an individual being employed by the organisation who has been trafficked or who is the victim of modern slavery.
DCHS is responsible for providing a range of health services for people living in Derby and Derbyshire. The care we provide is monitored by the Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) through regular compliance visits and processes to ensure that we are compliant with the Modern Slavery Act (2015).
Modern Slavery Guidance
This guidance is a resource providing clear and up to date information on the key facts, and to help public sector workers who may not routinely come across modern slavery recognise the signs and respond so that more victims get help and perpetrators are brought to justice.
The purpose of this framework is to provide a broad overview of the architecture by which Derbyshire Community Health Services NHS Foundation Trust (DCHS) monitors and manages our performance as an organisation, continue to improve our service offering and provide assurance to the Board of Directors.
The Trust promotes a culture of continuous learning for all staff, and this document will evolve in response to the changing environment in which we operate. In order for this framework to be robust all staff are encouraged to access appropriate training and development opportunities, including the suite of information on quality improvement methodologies referenced in this document.