Empty Lincolnshire homes worth over £484m

The museum is marking its 50^th anniversary with a weekend of family fun.

On Saturday 27 and Sunday 28 July, the popular Lincoln attraction will have a host of activities on offer, including:

• Hands-on crafts
• Face-painting
• A museum trail for children
• Penny farthing demonstrations

In addition, the traditional sweet shop will be open, and children will also have a chance to produce a print on the Victorian printing press.

There will also be a special exhibition in the Gatehouse Gallery, featuring photographs of the museum’s official opening in July 1969 and a varied selection of objects from its past, many of which have not been on show for years. 

Cllr Nick Worth, executive member for heritage, said: “After 50 years, the Museum of Lincolnshire Life is still going strong and attracting thousands of people each year.

“The museum is now a part of the county’s history itself and we’ll have a special exhibition telling its story through the years.

“There’s also a range of fun activities going on, making it a great way to kick-start your summer holidays.

“So come along and join in the celebrations.”

Over the weekend, the museum will be operating a ‘pay-what-you-decide’ approach, with visitors able to choose how much to donate for entry.

For more on the Museum of Lincolnshire Life, visit www.facebook.com/museumoflincolnshirelife

Two NHS workers faced the challenge of a lifetime after taking part in a 100km ‘ultra-marathon’ to help raise funds for patients on their ward.

Deborah Birch and Hayley Norton, who both work for United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT), recently took part in the infamous Race to the Stones – covering 100km in 24 hours and raising more than £1,000 en route.

The firm friends, who are both avid runners in their spare time, wanted to raise money for ULHT’s Frailty Assessment Unit, to help improve the environment for frail and older people and those with dementia who are admitted to hospital.

They have been training for months and Assistant Practitioner Hayley, said it was a test of endurance she’ll never forget.

“I’ve always been a runner, but the furthest race I had ever done was 10km,” said Hayley, who works at Lincoln County Hospital.

“I’ve entered the London marathon seven times and never got a place, so when Debs said she wanted to do an ultra before she was 50, I asked if she fancied some company.

“One of the hardest parts of the race was the hills. They were impressive and my legs are certainly not thanking me for it.

“The atmosphere from the start line to finish was unbelievable, everyone only had words of encouragement or giggles – we laughed so much.

“The patients I have spoken to have been amazed and thankful for the dedication we have had for the training – we have had a lot of families asking about it, most thinking we are absolutely bonkers.

“I also had a patient who I had chatted to about the race, who came back in to thank us on the ward and gave a lovely donation to the cause.

“The money will likely go towards equipment and resources to make the ward more dementia friendly, but anything to help make the patients stay more comfortable.”

Although both Deborah and Hayley had trained for months and were as mentally and physically prepared as they could be, their race was not without incident.

Disaster struck for Deborah at the 80km mark, when an injury to her knee forced her to retire, leaving sidekick Hayley to complete the final stretch of the trek on her own.

“I have no idea what happened – it was about 1am and Hayley and I had just left pit stop seven, with about 70km already covered,” said Deborah who works Trust wide for ULHT.

“I started to get a pain in my left knee that just got worse and worse, to the point where there was just no chance of running – even walking was proving a challenge.

“Pulling out was one of the hardest things I have ever had to do and having to watch Hayley go off into the dark on her own to continue was gutting.

Despite her setback, Deborah said that the experience on a whole was extremely worthwhile. She has also been confirmed her medal – with 80km under her belt well worthy of an ultra-marathon title.

“The atmosphere was unbelievable,” added Deborah.

“I hope the money we raise helps in some way to improve the experience of someone who is frail having to come into hospital.

“It can be such a scary time for them so if we can do something that makes that slightly easier or helps to distract them from being in hospital it has been worthwhile.”

You can still donate to Deborah and Hayley’s cause. Visit their JustGiving page here.

For more information on the Race to the Stones visit the website at www.racetothestones.com

Start your summer holidays with Access Lincoln’s free dinosaur hunt in Boultham Park on Wednesday 7 and Thursday 8 August.

There are 11 dinosaurs on the loose around the park! If you can track them down, you’ll be rewarded with a roar-some prize!

The dinosaurs have been created by local artist Rosie Ablewhite using locally-sourced wood, including some from Hartsholme Park.  

Alison Mackfall, Access Lincoln project co-ordinator, said: “With each dinosaur you track down you’ll find a letter. 

“Once you’ve collected them all, simply unscramble the anagram to claim your prize.  

“It’s a great opportunity to get out in the open air and get some exercise, and the ideal way for you and the family to start your summer holidays!”

To take part, simply collect an activity sheet from the Access Lincoln marquee, near the café, anytime between 10am and 3pm.

You can find Access Lincoln on Facebook at www.facebook.com/YourAccessLincoln  or on Twitter @AccessLincoln.

For more on all Access Lincoln has to offer, visit www.accesslincoln.co.uk

A new report has identified the specific needs of people who endure domestic abuse in rural areas, and put forward two recommendations for Lincolnshire.

The findings from the National Rural Crime Network report highlight the particular characteristics of this crime in rural areas, which has provided “invaluable” learning for agencies in Lincolnshire.

Unveiled today after an 18-month-research project, the report identifies a number of areas of vulnerability for victims, and also identified Lincolnshire as a “leading edge” in tackling the issue.

The areas of vulnerability include:

• Individuals in rural areas don’t have support services on their doorstep, meaning it can be harder for them to seek and access help.
• People living in rural areas may feel isolated, which can lead them to feeling trapped in an abusive situation.
• Often rural communities are close-knit, meaning people may find it harder to speak out and ask for help.
• Access to education and information is sometimes more sparse in rural areas, so knowledge of how to seek help is not as easy to attain for people who endure domestic abuse.

In Lincolnshire, the report praised the county for its partnership approach – the Police and Crime Commissioner, Lincolnshire County Council, and Lincolnshire Police have a close working relationship in relation to responding to domestic abuse, looking at how the specialist services are commissioned, information sharing, and working with a wide range of agencies who have contact with people who may be ‘hidden’ from obvious sight. In addition, police officers have been and will continue to be trained to a high level in order to recognise signs of domestic abuse that may not always be easy to spot. The services in Lincolnshire are praised as being at the “leading edge of innovative and evidence led commissioning”.

It also commended the county’s approach to evidence and data led commissioning – used to ensure the right services are delivered in the right places – and described Lincolnshire as a “leader in this way of thinking”.

“The support we offer to all victims of crime is an absolute priority for me and I have spent a great deal of time and energy focused on improving them,” said Police and Crime Commissioner for Lincolnshire Marc Jones.

“Working together with partners, using evidence to focus our efforts and effective and efficient commissioning of services have all been crucial in the changes made since I took office.

“I am delighted that those efforts and those of our partners have been recognised as leading the way across the UK, and this will only drive us forward in continuing our work to ensure those people trapped in the nightmare cycle of abuse can be helped and supported to escape and heal.”

Jade Sullivan, Domestic Abuse Lead for the Safer Lincolnshire Partnership, said: “We are heartened that report has recognised the innovative work we have done in Lincolnshire to help the victims of domestic abuse.

“We also welcome the help the report offers in terms of improving those services further. We are determined to build upon the work we have done so far and provide the best possible support for those people in Lincolnshire who desperately need our help.”

Assistant Chief Constable Kerrin Wilson, Lincolnshire Police, said: “Domestic abuse is everybody’s business. What this report shows is not only the devastating impact on victims and families, but also what we can do to better help those enduring this horrendous crime but those who are looking for avenues by which they can access help. The learning the survey has given us is invaluable.

“I’m glad that we are ahead of other areas but we are never complacent, we will take on board the two recommendations that the report has identified and make sure we act on them. We still have so much to do to educate people and prevent abusers from continuing to commit this awful crime.”

If you are struggling and want to access support or simply seek advice, please contact EDAN Lincs, the county’s Domestic Abuse Specialist Service. Call 01522 510041 or visit their website for more information www.edanlincs.org.uk/

Fowl play: Chicken carcasses dumped in Lincolnshire lay-bys

Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Seeks Judicial Review of College of Policing scheme to require all new police officers to obtain a degree

In  an exceptional legal move,  the Chief Constable of Lincolnshire Bill Skelly, supported by Police and Crime Commissioner Marc Jones has begun the first stage action to take the national College of Policing to Judicial Review over the new degree requirement recruitment scheme being imposed on the police service.  The College of Policing is the national body which was established by the Home Office in 2012  and Mr Skelly is taking issue with its plans to implement a new officer recruitment process which requires all recruits to have an academic degree or be prepared to commit to study for one in work time.  

But he says it will mean 40 fewer officers at any one time for front line policing  – roughly 10% of his deployable strength – because the study time has been significantly increased compared to the current recruitment programme, increased turnover and failure to complete the course. In addition, there will be extra cash costs to pay for contracts with local   academic providers and a requirement for more training staff within the force.  There is no estimate for the impact across England and Wales but if it is 40 officers for Lincolnshire, it could easily be over 4,000 for the country.

“I have been raising these concerns with the College of Policing and the National Police Chiefs Council (NPCC) for more than two years since the impact of PEQF became clear,” he said.  “The College has pushed forward ignoring the growing evidence that demonstrates the impracticality of their proposals for Lincolnshire. Their most recent communication states the intention to change Police Regulations to enforce the  Police Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) recruitment process from next year,” says Mr Skelly.

He is being fully supported by Lincolnshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Marc Jones who is funding the court action.   “All I am asking for is a stay of implementation (to the summer of 2023) to give time for a legitimate evaluation of the new system being imposed across the country  and for the  results to be assessed and any adjustments made,” says Mr Skelly. “In the meantime we are developing an enhanced initial training package that meets the requirements of the modern police officer without creating an unaffordable impact on the police service in Lincolnshire.”

In addition to the financial costs, Mr Skelly says that no assessment has been made on such issues as the additional strain on the Police Pension Scheme or on the impact on equalities.  Mr Skelly has also questioned the future of the Special Constabulary under PEQF.  He said “The College is requiring that every new police officer to be a degree holder and have undertaken years of initial training.  At present, Special Constables have the same police powers as our regular officers but do so after a limited period of training and a lower required level of educational qualifications.  I see this as unsustainable after the introduction of PEQF”.

Lincolnshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Marc Jones has also written to his PCC colleagues in England and Wales saying that many of them share his views on the introduction of PEQF.

“I was elected by the people of Lincolnshire to represent them and act in their best interests regarding policing and crime.  Put simply, if I did not challenge the imposition of these untested and far reaching changes that will see fewer officers on the streets of my county and the country as a whole, I would be failing in my duty.  The public did not support a council tax rise earlier this year so we could put extra cops in classrooms and to have fewer than ever fighting crime and protecting communities.  I would have expected the College to present a single business case that includes a detailed academic rationale, full financial assessments, detailed equalities assessments and a full benefits realisation plan,” said Mr Jones. “Protecting the people of Lincolnshire is our number one priority and to do that we cannot support a further loss of officer numbers to this ill thought through scheme.  We believe that losing around 40 officers from the front line without challenging the College would be unforgivable and the costs to the public both financially and in loss of service leave us with no choice.”

Key facts and implications of PEQF

The following research has been done by Lincolnshire Police which covers abstraction, failure demand, turnover, diversity and ethnic minorities, cost, rational, existing workforce and other significant issues; with a brief description of each below:

• To begin with abstraction has been found to be one of the key issues with PEQF, as the new routes will lead to an increased level of abstraction, which will remove officers from the front line.
• Lincolnshire Police will financially be unable to recruit additional officers to cover the level of abstraction, as PEQF will, on the whole, cost even more as a training initiative compared to IPLDP.
• From drawing comparisons with nursing, which has a similar educational history to policing, there may be an increase in failure demand from the pre-join degree, as well as an increased turnover.
• Another point of concern is that PEQF may have a negative impact on the diversity of forces and will disadvantage minority groups.
• There is also the issue of the College’s rational for the introduction for PEQF, as this does not seem to be substantiated by rigorous background research or pilot studies.
• The College have also yet to supply sufficient proposals on the special constable educational requirements and the promotion from constable to sergeant.

Introduction

The Policing Education Qualifications Framework (PEQF) represents a substantial change from the status quo in policing, with significant potential to impact upon the Statutory Duties and Obligations of the Service in general and of PCCs & Chief Officers in particular. These range from the Chief Constable’s duty to avoid discrimination in employment and other areas, through to those relating to the maintenance of business continuity and interoperability.

Abstractions

Definition of Abstraction: For the purpose of this report we define abstraction to be the withdrawal of a police officer from operational duties for the purposes of learning and assessment.

• The abstraction impact is very high, particularly around the PCDA, due to a compulsory 20% of time spent “off the job” in order to cover the required knowledge.
• The predicted abstraction of the student officer for the PCDA route is around 40% for year one, 20% in year two and 20% in year three. Currently, the abstraction level through IPLDP is 40% in year one and 6.4% for year two. Therefore, if a force recruits 5% of their total strength each year, then the abstraction of total force strength would rise from the current level of 2.5% to 6% of total constable strength.
• The predicted abstraction of the student officer for the DHEP route is around 40% for year one and 20% in year two.
• The predicted abstraction of the student officer for the Pre-Join route is around 7% for year one and year two.

Failure Demand

• No consideration appears to have been given by the College in its modelling to the impact of either the failure of student officers to complete their qualification course, or their resignation from the Service before their normal retirement date, i.e. the use of the PCDA primarily as a means to acquire a degree qualification without incurring student debt.
• All degree level courses have a non-completion rate and there does exist vocational degree qualifications, such as Nursing Degrees to which ready comparisons can be made. In 2015/2016 the average dropout rate across all degree programmes was 10.5% (Higher Education Statistical Association, 2018); whilst in nursing the average attrition rate is 25%(The Royal College of Nursing, 2018).
• The nursing degree programme has the closest parallel to the PEQF pre-join programme, in that it is a programme designed for a specific career outcome. The pre-join degree will have the additional pressure on failure demand.

Turnover

• The percentage range of turn over for PEQF is predicted from turnover rates in similar professions such as teaching and nursing, whose turnover rates are between 10%-16% (Department for Education, 2017; Royal College of Nursing, 2018) this would double the current average police turnover of 6% (Home Office, 2017).

Diversity and Ethnic Minorities

• Ethnic minorities are well-represented in traditionally academic and high-earning degrees such as law (33.7%), medicine and dentistry (33.6%), business and administrative studies (30.7%). They are much less represented in public sector degrees such as education (15.1%).
• Additional evidence for this conclusion can be gathered from the NHS, as similar requirements are in place for nursing, yet the organisation still faces challenges with diversity and attrition.
• There is the concern that the introduction of the entry requirements of pre-join, degree-holder and apprenticeship will deter mature applicants. The numbers interested in becoming police officers who are under 25 is 51.4%, compared to those aged 26 and over, which is 48.5%. Thus, there are a substantial proportion of those individuals over the age of 26 who want to pursue a career in policing.
• One of the larger issues for mature applicants is that the pre-join degree option would not be a suitable path for a lot of applicants, due to financial and timing constraints. For example, in consultations it has been raised that working as a Special Constable would reduce the opportunity for applicants to take part in paid work to supplement their income.
• The longer probationary periods may be off-putting for mature applicants. By extending the probationary period, apprentices would be paid an apprenticeship wage for 3 years. It is likely that this would appeal more to younger rather than mature applicants. This is further evidenced as mature applicants, targeted for recruitment, find even the current appointment rates of pay problematic.
• By introducing higher entry requirements, such as a pre-join degree, which are academic in nature, the College may be affecting the public-sector Equality duty. There needs to be clarity around how the College will ensure that chief constables are upholding their Equality duty, specifically when it comes to students who have a disability that would impact on their learning.
• There are particular protected characteristics, which it is against the law to discriminate against. In both of the College’s equality impact analyses they have provided very limited information on some of these characteristics (e.g. gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership), and how PEQF could affect them.
• An estimated 25.6% of pupils who were in receipt of Free School Meals (FSM) aged 15 in 2012/13 entered Higher Education by age 19 by 2016/17. This compares to 43.3% of non-FSM pupils. The gap in progression rates between FSM and non-FSM pupils has remained at 17.7 percentage points over the past three years. The gap has varied between 16.8 and 19.2 percentage points since 2005/06 (Department of Education, 2018). Therefore adding a degree to the entry criteria for police officer could be a potential barrier to those from a disadvantaged socio-economic background. Meaning the force would not be representative of the people we serve.

Cost

• We determine that by 2024 Lincolnshire Police would be expending £1,152,000 p.a. on PCDA training. Only circa £400,000 of this would be met by Force Apprenticeship Levy contributions, with a further £115,200 having to be drawn from Force funds as a contribution to Government co-investment. This represents a significant increase in the budget currently set aside for the direct costs associated with the training of new recruits (circa £100,000).
• With the adoption of DHEP the overall cost of training would fall by circa £113,000. This ‘saving’ is in fact a cost to the Force, as external funding for this training is not available as it is for apprenticeship training. We anticipate that funds recouped from provision of apprenticeship training might be deployed to fund other PEQF qualification routes, but this simply places the eligible costs of apprenticeship training as a cost to the Force, so no real saving is achieved.

Rationale

• The College continues to present the unsupported claim that development of a higher skilled workforce will result in better policing outcomes(The College of Policing, 2018, p. 8). Yet, the latest academic examination of the evidence of the impact of graduate education upon policing concludes that, “research is unable to confirm unambiguously that values associated with higher levels of education may bring improved policing outcomes,” and critically, that, “it seems policing or criminal justice degrees confers no particular advantage” (Brown, 2018).
• The College has presented the role of police officer at a level 6, whereas it currently is set at a level 3. The College has attempted to relay their rationale for this decision in a number of documents (e.g. Case Study 1 – Why has the new police constable curriculum been set at level 6?). Yet, it stills remains arguable and also subjective as to what level the role of PC should be at.
• In 2007 Denmark introduced their bachelor’s degree programme in policing. There were many issues with this introduction and it gradually met its demise due to the systematic decoupling of the educational reform from its strategic objectives (Diderichsen, 2017). There can be parallels drawn from this introduction to that of PEQF.

Existing Workforce

• The College has released limited information on the educational requirements and training of special constables, in relation to PEQF. They mention in their transition guidance document (June 2019) that in the future they will be developing proposals for specials that accommodate the service’s needs.
• There is also limited information that has been released on a constable’s promotion to sergeant and what the requirements are for this under PEQF. At the time of the writing on the transition guidance document (June 2019) the PEQF requirements for the rank of sergeant and above have still yet to be confirmed.

Other Significant Issues

• The current National Police Promotions Framework (NPPF) was developed and trialled over several years before then being implemented over an additional three-year timeframe. The PEQF is expected to be simultaneously developed and implemented across all Home Office Forces by January 2020, with very few or no trials. It seems that the College will provide support, yet worryingly has supplied limited opportunity to pilot different delivery models, which would be very insightful for effective implementation of PEQF.
• The College have attempted to consult with various people, such as Chief Constables and PCCs. These results were presented in their December 2016 report in which they failed to address key concerns or make any changes to their plans (e.g. Individual respondents had mixed views on whether the level 6 description is relevant to the role of constable).

References

Brown, J., 2018. Do Graduate Police Officers Make a Difference to Policing? Results of an Integrative Literature Review. Policing: A Journal of Policy and Practice, 15th November.pp. 1-22.

Department for Education. (2017). School Workforce in England: November 2016. Retrieved from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/620825/SFR25_2017_MainText.pdf

Department of Education. (2018). Widening Participation in Higher Education, England, 2016/17 age cohort – Official Statistics. Retrieved from: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/757897/WP2018-MainText.pdf

Diderichsen, A. (2017). Renewal and Retraditionalisation: The Short and Not Very Glorious History of Danish Bachelor’s Degree in Policing. Nordisk Olitiforskning, 4, 149-169. 

Higher Education Statistical Association, 2018. What are HE students’ progression rates and qualifications?. [Online] 
Available at: https://www.hesa.ac.uk/data-and-analysis/students/outcomes
[Accessed 6th December 2018].

Home Office. (2017). Police Workforce, England and Wales, 31 March 2017. Retrieved from:  https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/630471/hosb1017-police-workforce.pdf 

The Royal College of Nursing. (2018). Fund our Future Nurses. Retrieved from: https://scadmin.rcn.org.uk/professional-development/publications/pub-007348

The Royal College of Nursing, 2018. Nursing student dropout rates. [Online] 
Available at: https://www.rcn.org.uk/news-and-events/news/student-attrition-rates
[Accessed 5th December 2018].

Reference: PEQF – JudJudicial Review Action Launchedhed

Lincolnshire life a ‘barrier to care’ as health service distances grow

Over 170 Lincolnshire drivers caught speeding at 100mph+

A quest has begun to find his relatives for a commemoration.

17,000 fish released into River Witham after devastating pollution

Four people have been charged following an incident at Stamford Welland Academy, on May 18.

Police were called to the school at around 3.50am after being alerted by a local resident and found damage to model railway exhibits which had been set up for a display later that day.

The males – three aged 16 and one aged 15 – have been charged with criminal damage. They cannot be named for legal reasons.

They are due to appear at Lincoln Youth Court on August 19.

Consultant Psychiatrist and Medical Director for Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust, Dr Ananta Dave will be visiting the United States this month to research how services are supporting and preventing suicide in healthcare professionals, as part of funding from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust.

Dr Dave will be seeking to learn more about how the US has set up support services to treat doctors, and other healthcare professionals, with mental health and addiction problems. There are lots of good examples of how organisations have changed the culture in the medical profession and set up services and online communities to support professionals, which she hopes to learn more about and bring back ideas to the UK.

Dr Dave said: “Caring for the carers is vitally important if we are to safeguard our most precious resource in the NHS, the people who work for us.

“Over the years, I have lost medical friends and colleagues to suicide and seen good people become traumatised by the work they do. I have also seen the devastation of suicide in the words, faces and grief of loved ones. 

“There remains significant shame, stigma and secrecy associated with doctors (nurses and other healthcare workers) seeking help and it is important that they have access to a sensitive, confidential service provided by trained competent clinicians. We need to speak up, help colleagues speak up and set up systems and services that work for them and I hope my research in this area will help the profession develop strong support systems in the future. I also look forward to being able to share the learning and good practice in our local trust and how we can continue to improve the wellbeing support we offer our staff.”

The visit is funded by the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, and Dr Dave is one of 150 fellows selected from almost 1,800 applications to receive the research grant. Each year the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust awards fellowships to carry out research projects overseas. Projects are designed to exchange ideas and best practice, and build greater understanding between peoples and cultures, in order that professions and communities can benefit from international collaboration.

Dr Dave will travel to the United States this weekend (13 July) and will spend six weeks meeting a wide range of professionals, patients and carers across the country as part of her learning.

Yellow painted bikes are appearing along the race routes of next month’s Bourne CiCLE Festival to raise awareness of the event.

They include a classic bike from the 1940s donated by Grantham man John Baldwin, re-painted and placed in Billingborough to commemorate his late father.

John, of Cedarwood Avenue, donated three bikes to the festival. He made a special request that his father’s bike was displayed in the village where the family used to live.

“I liked the idea of his bike going on show back in our village as part of the festival,” he said. “I couldn’t bring myself to scrap it.”

South Kesteven District Council is organising the festival, along with the Discover South Kesteven visitor team at InvestSK, the council’s economic growth and regeneration company.  

Andrew Norman, Head of Visitor Economy for InvestSK said “We wanted to recreate the look and feel of the Tour of Yorkshire with these colourful bikes. We are looking to establish South Kesteven as a cycling destination and want to make a splash with our first festival.

“We put out an appeal for unwanted cycles to paint yellow and place along the routes and more than 50 have now been handed over, many of which are now in place.”

All the bikes are being painted yellow to brighten both the men’s and women’s races in the district’s first cycling festival.  One of the first was put in place on the outskirts of Bourne.

Others will appear along the men’s 175-kilometre road race route and the 115-kilometre women’s route, with both races expected to attract the UK’s top professional teams.

Both start and finish in Bourne, going through the town twice before final dashes to the finish.  

The men’s race takes in Billingborough, Folkingham and Old Somerby and the women’s race includes Ingoldsby, Bitchfield and Castle Bytham. 

The festival also stages an amateur riders’ Sportive on Saturday morning and a women’s team time trial on Sunday morning.

For all routes,  timings and festival details; www.bourneciclefestival.com

The number of deaths in Lincolnshire’s hospitals are at an all-time low thanks to new and improved initiatives to increase the quality of care for patients.
 
The mortality rate for United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust has fallen to the lowest rate ever as staff continue to implement across-the-board improvements in patient care, leading to 208 less deaths than expected between April 2018 and March 2019.
 
Data on mortality rates, known as Hospital Standardised Mortality Ratio (HSMR), shows that the current score for the Trust is now at an average of 89.43 for the last year, performing within the best 22% of Trusts nationally.
 
HSMR is designed to assess whether the number of hospital deaths is higher or lower than expected, depending on the case mix of patients involved. It is calculated by healthcare analysis organisation Dr Foster and the national average is given a score of 100.
 
The Trust was placed in quality special measures after its higher-than-expected mortality rates for 2012/13 prompted a review by Sir Bruce Keogh, Medical Director for England. The current HSMR is the lowest recorded since then.
 
For the Summary Hospital-level Mortality Indicator (SHMI), the current performance for ULHT is also within expected limits at 109.92 .This measure looks at all in-hospital deaths as well as those deaths where the patient died 30 days after discharge from hospital.
 
Key areas where improvements have been made are:

• Improved cleanliness and infection rates.
• Introduction of medical examiner roles to review every death.
• In-depth reviews into issues with certain health conditions.
• Workshops with clinicians around accurate documentation.
• Improved use of care bundles
• Investment in the clinical coding department to ensure engagement with clinical staff and accurate recording of patient’s conditions and reflection of the care received.
• System-wide working across Lincolnshire to improve care and identify shared learning. 

Dr Neill Hepburn, Medical Director at ULHT, said: “This is a fantastic achievement and is due to the hard work of all our staff. We can’t underestimate the massive progress we have made as a Trust over the past few years.
 
“There’s no single factor that led to the reduction, it is due to widespread improvements to quality of patient care and fostering a safety culture at our hospitals.
 
“To have achieved a reduction from 113 to 89.42 is a real testament to everyone’s hard work and commitment to improve patient care. Every member of staff has contributed to this improvement journey. 
 
“We won’t sit on our laurels. There is still more work to be done and we are working hard to get out of special measures and continue to make long-term changes to the quality of our services.”

Over the past 20 years soundLINCS has been on a journey, touching the lives of many different people from all backgrounds unleashing potential through music. 

soundLINCS is delighted to be the lead organisation, which draws together 13 partners on a new arts initiative in Lincolnshire.

soundLINCS is currently seeking a Part Time Producer to assist the partnership in contributing to the development of arts and music opportunities throughout Lincolnshire as part of its Future of the Past Heritage Lottery funded project.

The Future of the Past project aims to place groups of young people at heritage sites across the County to work together with the site to reinterpret an aspect of the heritage from a youth perspective and make it engaging for other young people and families.

The successful candidate will be responsible for working with each heritage site and to co-ordinate all the processes involved in the project, assisting with the management and delivery of the project, monitoring progress against the project’s approved purposes and preparing progress reports.

The closing date for applications is 22^nd July 2019 with interviews being held on 5^th August 2019.  For further information and a candicate pack visit soundLINCS Website – http://www.soundlincs.org/about-us/work-with-us/

Alternatively, please contact Shelley on 01522 510073, email shelley@soundlincs.org