On June 15, 2022 the joint professional associations representing the majority of Estates and Facilities services across UK healthcare celebrated the first ever National Healthcare Estates and Facilities Day. This event was launched to showcase and recognise the essential work of all E&F professions in the delivery of health and social care to people across the UK, with a commitment to hold a day of recognition every year on the third Wednesday of June.
Estates and Facilities services are estimated to make up around 8% of the NHS workforce but we find they are consistently undervalued in their work environments. Understandably the public perception of the NHS is principally focused on nurses and medical staff, but we would assert that the work of the directly patient-facing workforce in hospitals and care settings would be impossible without the army of E&F professions underpinning them, many of whom also work beside their clinical colleagues directly on the ‘frontline’.
Last year’s first ever National Healthcare Estates & Facilities Day was a huge success.
There were 538 registrations from healthcare organisations, contractors and social care teams keen to participate in the day, giving an amazing reach of over 250,000 staff across the four nations of the UK.
Activities were shared on social media throughout the day as Trusts and Health Boards celebrated the wide variety of skills and knowledge within E&F teams - from porters to cleaners, reception staff to caterers, project teams to security and more - who keep healthcare buildings operational, day-in day-out, and able to provide the very best patient care.
We are pleased to report that planning is well underway for the 2023 National Healthcare E&F Day which is on June 21 this year and we will be announcing the launch formally and releasing supporter packs in early April.
Keep an eye out for announcements around that time from all of the professional bodies involved as well as links to the dedicated website for the day (to be announced at the launch).
June 21 will be an occasion for every NHS, social care and independent healthcare organisation to celebrate the work of their E&F professions, raise the profile of these staff groups for the hugely rewarding career opportunities that they offer, and reflect on the achievements and sacrifices made by people in these roles on a daily basis.
The Joint Associations Group hopes that this day will offer an opportunity to celebrate the work of our members and raise the profiles of these professions to everyone looking for rewarding and respected employment. We hope this will contribute positively to the workforce sustainability of our professions long into the future and anchor our communities to the sources of healthcare that have been so important to us all in recent times. We want every organisation to show their E&F staff groups just how much the work they do is valued, and promote the opportunities this diverse range of professions can give to school leavers, graduates and anyone looking for a great career.
