Freedom To Speak Up Update

As we move into the New Year and welcome new staff into the Trust, I wanted to update you on changes within the Freedom to Speak Up team – yes, we now have a team!

Our main Freedom To Speak Up (FTSU) contact number remains the same: 07562 158013. Please use this if you see or hear something you don’t think is safe for patients, colleagues or the Trust, and is causing you concern

Our team
Tom Fielder joined us late last year as our new FTSU Advisor. Tom has a background in patient experience and teaching, and his knowledge, understanding, and ability to listen will be a huge benefit to the service we currently provide.

Tom said, ‘Prior to taking up this position, I worked for North Bristol Trust within one of the Patient Experience Teams. One of the most eye-opening realisations I had, was that quite often, staff and patients share the same frustrations and by further supporting staff, we can ensure that patients are being given the highest possible level of care and influence change.

‘I look forward to working alongside you all to make EEAST a place of work where you can feel comfortable and confident in raising concerns and ensuring the safety of both our patients and staff.

Linda Morris is a trained FTSU Guardian and has been working with us over the past few months, providing additional support. Linda is with us two days a week and has been developing the infrastructure ready for us to begin recruiting FTSU Ambassadors during the next few weeks.

Please be assured, that anything you discuss with anyone in the FTSU team is held in the strictest of confidence. We will not share your information without your consent unless it is an immediate safeguarding issue, but even in those instances we will agree this with you before escalating.

Contacting us
When you contact the team, you have a choice of who you wish to talk to. For most issues, Tom will be the first point of contact for many of you calling in to the service. Tom provides a great listening ear he may be able to provide guidance or will signpost you to relevant support within the Trust. He can also escalate more complex concerns to the relevant Guardian. As Guardians, Linda and myself deal with casework and support any more complicated issues.

Tom Fielder: 07562 158013 (this is the main FTSU number and should be used for most queries)

Should you need to speak to one of the Guardians directly, you can contact us on the following numbers:

Linda Morris: 07729 107999
Janice Scott: 07729 108696

Become an FTSU Ambassador
In the next two weeks we will begin the first round of recruitment into new FTSU Ambassador roles. Our volunteer Ambassadors will support the FTSU work at a local level and work closely with our team. So, if you are passionate about creating a culture of openness and honesty and feel you have the skills and experience to support staff who want to raise a concern, please do volunteer. Adverts will be appearing shortly so keep an eye out and please share them with your colleagues as well.

Our hours
Please also note that whilst we broadly work standard office hours, we have expanded our working schedule to include regular evening working and the first Saturday of each month. If you would like to speak to someone outside of these hours, we are more than happy to arrange a convenient time for you.

Finally, please take a couple of minutes to look through our FTSU information leaflet, which we’ve included below, it explains exactly what FTSU is and should answer any questions you may have about how the process works. There are also posters available, which can be downloaded and displayed in all offices and stations.

Thank you,

Janice Scott
FTSU Guardian

Published 19th January 2022