People of Luton have their say on health plans

The health trust which provides community and health services to people in Luton, has been listening to what its users want it to focus on for the next five years.

Over the summer, East London NHS Foundation Trust (ELFT) held a 'Big Conversation' with staff, service users and stakeholders, to get thoughts and views about what the Trust's focus should be. Local people were invited to attend a workshop or complete a questionnaire to contribute their ideas to develop the Strategy.

The Trust has now produced its new Strategy which takes into account the changing needs and strengths of the local population, the impact of the pandemic on local communities, greater collaborative working between local health and social care organisations, and the views of local people and stakeholders. It has provided ELFT with a clear direction and defines their priorities going forward.

Its' four objectives are to improve population health so that communities are healthier and able to get more out of life, improve the experience of care – so that anyone in contact with the services feels safe, feels involved in decisions about their care and knows that the staff around them are focused on their recovery and their future goals, improve staff experience – so that staff are able to grow, learn, feel supported and enjoy what they do and improve value – by making the best use of its' resources, making the best use of everyone’s time, removing obstacles that delay or hold things up, and by adopting systems and processes to make things more efficient and effective for everyone.

Chief Executive Paul Calaminus said, "I am so grateful to everyone who set aside time to talk to us and help us to identify the key areas we need to prioritise over the next five years. Having the right strategy matters more than ever as we recover and come to terms with the impact of the pandemic. It will help us to help our communities get back on their feet and to tackle the health needs highlighted by coronavirus. Everything we do here at ELFT will stem from this strategy. This is an exciting time. I look forward to working with local organisations, with our staff and with those who use our services, to bring the strategy to life.”

The ELFT provides a wide range of community and inpatient services to children, young people, adults of working age, older adults and forensic services to Luton and Bedfordshire, London, Hackney, Newham, and Tower Hamlets.