Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust addresses ‘requires improvement’ rating

The chief executive of an NHS Trust that was rated as ‘requires improvement’ said the organisation had taken a “hard look” at where it was and has made changes to improve.

The Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Trust (CPFT) was given the ‘requires improvement’ rating by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) following an assessment in February.

The Trust is responsible for delivering a number of NHS services in the community, including physical and mental health, and specialist services.

The report published by the CQC recognised that the inspection took place “at a time of ongoing instability for executive leadership” and set out a number of areas the Trust needed to improve.

The report highlighted that “significant numbers of staff didn’t feel safe speaking up” and that they felt senior leaders were “not visible”.

It also said that staff “continued to raise concerns about racial and disability discrimination at work” and said there is “still a lot more to do” to make sure “meaningful changes take place” to address this issue.

The CQC also highlighted several positive findings, including that the new chief executive had been “well received” and that staff found him “open” and felt able to raise concerns with him.

The report recognised that he had taken “immediate actions” when needed and said there were “some signs of a renewed sense of direction”

The CQC added that all the staff inspectors spoke to were “enthusiastic, committed and focused” on people who use the Trust’s services.

The report also described some of the research and innovation programmes being carried out at the Trust as “inspirational” and said inspectors heard about “many high performing and innovative services”.

Steve Grange, chief executive officer at CPFT, told a board of directors’ meeting today that the CQC report “marks a moment in time” and that the Trust has responded to make improvements.

He said before the inspection the Trust had identified improvements it needed to make internally and was “delighted” some of the changes made had been accepted by the CQC.

Mr Grange recognised the references in the report to views shared by staff and said, while it was “difficult to read”, it was a “true reflection of where the organisation has been”.

He said: “The CQC report is a reflection of where the organisation has come from, but does not determine where the organisation is going”.

Mr Grange added that he believed the Trust had a “solid platform to move forward on”.

He also highlighted some of the Trust’s achievements, including being the first NHS Trust in the country to receive a Gold Award from the Kinship Care Support Quality Standard, which he said recognised CPFT’s “exceptional commitment to supporting colleagues who are kinship carers”.