Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust is celebrating after being named the Health Service Journal (HSJ) Acute or Specialist Trust of the Year at the most coveted awards in the NHS.

The trust, which runs King’s Mill Hospital, Sutton; Newark Hospital; and Mansfield Community Hospital, was recently also rated the third best in the NHS to work for or receive care at in the national NHS Staff Survey.

The three reasons presented for Sherwood to win the HSJ award were the wellbeing of colleagues being at the centre of decision making, the trust’s community response to Covid-19, and the trust being the most improved in the last five years.

The trust particularly thanked patient Julian Kinsey, who was part of the group that presented for the award.

Chief executive Richard Mitchell said: “I am so proud of what colleagues at Sherwood have achieved. To win HSJ Trust of the Year in a year when Covid has placed unprecedented pressure on all of us, the NHS and the world, feels particularly special.

“This win is a huge accolade for Sherwood and this belongs to the colleagues and volunteers who work at Sherwood, the patients we care for, our communities and our friends and family.

“Whilst colleagues have cared for our patients over the last year, I am proud that we have cared for our colleagues, with a strong focus on their wellbeing.

“I would also like to thank our community which has supported us so much over the last year, and the partners that we work with in health and social care. We are not able to operate successfully without working closely with our colleagues across Nottinghamshire and beyond.

“Real change does not happen overnight. This award is because of the efforts of so many over the last ten years and beyond, but anything is possible if you look after the people around you. Sherwood has a strong future ahead of us.”

HSJ editor, Alistair McLellan, comments: “Following what was undoubtedly the most challenging year for the NHS, it was impressive to see the commitment to excellence shown by the finalists.

“The high quality of entrants in 2020 posed a real challenge to our expert judging panel, who were impressed by the breadth of applications demonstrating real evidence of improvements to patient care.

“We know that Sherwood Forest Hospitals is not alone in fostering a culture of excellence and hope that this award win will be a source of inspiration for like-minded teams across the country. We are delighted that the HSJ Awards continue to be considered the gold standard awards programme in healthcare. Congratulations again to Sherwood Forest Hospitals and welcome to the HSJ Awards Alumni!”

Over 4,500 health and social care staff “tuned in” to the first virtual HSJ Awards evening to celebrate the dedication, innovation, and teamwork within the health care community. Hosted by comedian, actor and charity campaigner, Sir Lenny Henry, alongside award-winning journalist and broadcaster, Victoria Derbyshire, the awards ceremony celebrated the diligent and selfless work of our healthcare heroes over the past 12 months – a year which has been one of the most demanding on record for the NHS.

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