The People at our Heart awards are a staff and volunteer recognition scheme that enables patients, relatives, colleagues and the public, to express thanks and recognise the efforts of our staff and volunteers.
The awards help to identify and celebrate colleagues who best represent our values of:
How are nominations judged?
The judging panel is made up of clinical and non-clinical staff, patient and governor representatives. At the end of each quarter, the panel come together to review each of the nominations received and select two individual winners, one volunteer and one winning team. All nominations are anonymised to ensure fairness and to ensure an unbiased selection process.
Each winner is then invited to an award presentation in their place of work and a colleague, friend or family member may also attend.
All winners throughout the year will also be entered into the annual ‘People at our Heart -Employee of the Year’, ‘People at our Heart – Team of the Year’ and ‘People at our Heart – Volunteer of the Year’ awards.
Top tips for a winning staff awards entry
People at the Heart awards nominations are judged on quality, not quantity. This means a person who receives three nominations isn’t judged more favourably than someone who receives one. It’s better to submit one really good nomination, than nominate the same person multiple times.
Here are some top tips on how to write a winning entry:
Make sure you accurately identify the person or team you are nominating for the award and ensure that you provide their full name, position and location as without this information your nomination will not be processed.
Say what the nominee did (e.g. projects, activities). How they went are above and beyond their role, giving specific examples. Explain what were the results and/or impact?
How did they demonstrate their hard work and commitment to the Trust values?
Appeal to the judging panel’s hearts – use emotive language to describe the difference the person made, the value of what they did and how it made you feel.
Entry terms and conditions
- Nominations are invited from colleagues, patients and visitors.
- Nominations will only be accepted via the online nomination form or via a paper nomination form, which can be found on all wards/departments and reception areas across the Trust. Unfortunately letters or cards will not be accepted.
- Please note: there is a 300 word limit for each nomination. Nominations which exceed this limit will not be considered.
- The person nominating should identify a recent specific event or incident which illustrates why the staff member, team or volunteer should be recognised. They should give full details of the incident or experience, and reasons why it was so exemplary, including why it is such a great example of the individual/volunteer/team demonstrating consideration for and commitment to placing patients at the heart of everything they do.
- Individuals, volunteers and teams may not nominate themselves.
- Nominators will have the right to remain anonymous (i.e. not have their identity disclosed to their nominee)
Submit a nomination
If there is a member of staff, team or volunteer who have gone above and beyond their role to make a difference, then simply nominate them for a quarterly award. You can pick up a nomination form found on most wards/departments and at any reception areas or simply submit online:
