Category Archives: Notices
Derian Day is just around the corner, so why not dress to impress and get happy feet with our brand new Danni socks!
They’re priced at just £2.99 for children (UK Size 4-7), and £3.99 for adults (UK Size 4-8), and are now available to be purchased in reception. Get them in time for Derian Day this Friday!
In a week from today, Friday 1st October, we’re turning Lancashire GREEN and joining together to celebrate Derian’s birthday.
In turn, we’re hoping to turn the hospice green and get everyone involved in the inaugural #DerianDay fundraiser!
Although we don’t have access to green scrubs, why not wear a green bobble in your hair, or even green socks! For anyone who wears office wear, works in the shops, or participates in Dress Down Friday, green FUNdraising t-shirts are available for you in the fundraising store should you want one. Come up and see someone in Vinten Place and they’ll be more than happy to supply you with one.
Kath will be making green cakes, our children and young people will be doing green arts and crafts… how can YOU go green?! Get your thinking caps on (hopefully they’re green too) and let’s go all out next Friday!
After his mammoth tour of all 51 English cities in just 22 days, Jacob Reddy is returning to Derian to perform for our team today (Tuesday 14th September).
The 16-year-old singer/songwriter raised almost £9,000 during his six-week holidays, busking everywhere from Norwich to Newcastle, and Plymouth to Preston. Along the way, he was surprised by his favourite YouTuber and inspiration behind the tour JaackMaate, and even got a shout-out from his favourite artist Frank Turner at his gig in Manchester on Jacob’s final day.
We can’t wait to welcome Jacob back and celebrate his efforts with a gig in the Conference Room from 12pm. We hope to see as many of you there as possible for coffee, cake and live music!
Educake is a new initiative at Derian House to help all our teams share information face-to-face.
These sessions are not limited to the Clinical Team but are for all teams within Derian. We encourage all teams who have something to contribute to get involved. The sessions will be held every Tuesday & Thursday from 14:00 – 15:00, this will give teams the opportunity to present and to facilitate a Q&A session after.
There is no set format but it is important to make each session fun and engaging. Please email siobhan.mccoy@derianhouse.co.uk for further queries.
The first session tomorrow is going to be led by Luke Bateson and he will be doing an open Q&A on the following topics:
- Roles, responsibilities and legislation for Housekeeping
- Roles, responsibilities and legislation for Building upkeep
- Environmental practices
- Security arrangements
- Health and Safety practices
As of tomorrow morning (Wednesday 8th September), the sign-in machines in Reception and Vinten Place will be fully operational.
Please make you sure sign in and out of the building.
Calling all budding models! We’ve recently received our exciting new stock of Derian clothing, which consists of four different styles of Pop art inspired Danni t-shirts and university society hoodies.
In order to be on a similar wavelength to Boohoo.com and Pretty Little Thing, we’re hoping to do a photoshoot in the gardens next week to promote the sales of our range across social platforms and the Derian House website.
Have you ever wanted to do some (tasteful) modelling? We’d love our staff to be involved in the promotion and model the clothing range. We’re hoping to get these photos done on Monday 23rd and Tuesday 24th August, so if you’re interested please email cameron.murray@derianhouse.co.uk or text the Comms phone on 07865 902049.
The Bank of England will be holding staff nominations for its next charity partner in September. Bank of England employees will be asked to nominate causes close to their heart and Together for Short Lives would love your help with securing a nomination for them on behalf of children’s hospices across the UK.
An employee nomination is the only way to be included in the running for their charity of the year partnership, which always supports a national cause. Following nominations, charities are shortlisted and all Bank of England staff then have the opportunity to vote for the charity they want to support. The two shortlisted charities with the highest number of votes become their charitable partners for a 12-month period. This year long partnership holds an estimated value £100,000. With thousands of hospice staff and volunteers and hundreds of thousands of supporters between us all, we are a huge collective force if we work together – and we need your help!
A vote for Together for Short Lives is a vote for Derian House, and they’d be so grateful if you could reach out to any of your contacts in your network who may work for the Bank of England or anyone who knows their staff, to encourage nominations and votes for Together for Short Lives. It’s an internal process so they’re relying on our networks and contacts as opposed to generating support through public social media campaigns at this stage. That would change if our umbrella charity was to get through to the employee vote!
Thank you.
*on behalf of Lynn Grayson*
Hello everyone,
You told us (in staff temperature checks and at the We are Derian forum) that you wanted better communication between departments.
As part of this, we will now be providing a round-up after each SMT meeting of the most important/interesting points talked about!
SMT Roundup – August
- A big thank you to all the team for your engagement with the PCR testing programme that we’ve had to roll-out quickly
- There’s going to be a focus on working in the ‘new normal’ with a return of more face to face meetings starting with Keeping in Touch in September
- Culture & Values sessions will also return in September to review for Year 4 led by David, Lynn and Ben with a focus on well-being and communication
- Staff support drop-in sessions are going to start soon led by Dawn and Sue, these will be an opportunity to discuss any work related issue so look-out for details of the first meeting to follow soon
- September will be a busy month as we also welcome new starters across all the teams at Derian
- The expansion of our retail network is continuing, Andrew will share more details soon
- The Great Big House Giveaway is going really well with almost £30k raised already
- The strategy for the next 3 years has now been completed to ensure we meet all of our strategic aims and will be cascaded to teams in the next couple of weeks
- Provide Outstanding Care
- A Great Place to Work
- Champion the voice of our families, staff and volunteers.
- Lead the way in children’s & young people’s hospice care and wellbeing
- Be Innovative and Creative
- Have sustainable financial plans.
- EMIS project is ongoing and is progressing well with work behind the scenes at the moment.
- We currently have a couple of issues with the CCTV system but these are being addressed as a matter of urgency. There has been a new CCTV camera fitted to cover the Woodland Counselling pod in readiness for this being opened.
And finally
- Planning has begun for a big Derian Christmas party, keep a look out for a ‘Save the Date’ announcement coming soon (I’m now waiting for the comments from the Clinical team for mentioning Christmas in August!!)
Hope this information is useful – feel free to let me know if you have any suggestions on how we can further improve communications between departments.
Exciting news – Derian House has been registered to ‘Concerts for Carers’, a website which works alongside the NHS and affiliated charities to offer free gig tickets for carers.
You simply pay a small administration fee (which you can choose to be refunded should you be unsuccessful in the ballot, or donate to Concerts for Carers) for the concerts you wish to attend, and then wait to hear if you are successful.
Register by scanning in your work ID card, create an account and you’re good to go!
Euxfest is returning this August Bank Holiday, and we’re looking for willing volunteers to take part in this massive weekend fundraiser that raises loads of money for Derian House!
If you’re interested in pulling a pint or selling raffle tickets on any of the days (Friday 27th August, Saturday 28th August, Sunday 29th August), then please contact Fran. Even if you dedicate just a couple of hours, you’ll then be free to enjoy the rest of the festival which will consist of plenty of beer and live music – what’s not to love after 18 months locked away!
For those who have not seen the updated guidance, from Monday 16 August people who are double jabbed or aged under 18 will no longer be legally required to self-isolate if they are identified as a close contact of a positive COVID-19 case.
Given this change in guidance we have made the decision at this point to implement a number of changes in the way we manage isolation periods and can confirm the following;
- If you are symptomatic and awaiting results of a PCR test, we will continue to pay for your isolation period whilst you await results.
- If you are COVID positive, this will be managed in the same way as any other sickness absence reason. If you are entitled to Company sick pay, you will receive this, if you are not, you will receive SSP.
- If you are not symptomatic but have been told to take a PCR test by NHS test and Trace due to close contact you do not need to self-isolate whilst you await your results (Support team only, Care Team see below)
- If you are identified as a close contact and are not vaccinated (due to guidance from your GP) you will be asked by NHS Test and Trace to self-isolate. Under these circumstances please speak to HR.
- If you are identified as a close contact and are not vaccinated (due to personal choice) you will be asked by NHS Test and Trace to self-isolate. Under these circumstances, you will not receive full pay for your isolation period. You will be paid SSP only and the responsibility will be yours to claim any available grants.
Care Team Only
The guidance also states that if you are a double vaccinated Health Care Worker that has a close contact and notified by NHS Test and Trace, you must have a PCR immediately. If the PCR results return negative, you can return to work however you must take a Lateral Flow Test every day for 10 days (extra kits can be received from HR). You must also have a risk assessment carried out by a designated person in the workplace before you return to work. If your PCR returns positive, you must follow the isolation guidance.
Further details surrounding the changes to self-isolation periods can be found here; https://www.gov.uk/government/news/self-isolation-removed-for-double-jabbed-close-contacts-from-16-august
I am conscious this is significant change so if you have any further questions please do not hesitate to contact me.
NHS Test and Trace has made weekly COVID-19 Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and Lateral Flow testing (LFT) available to all hospices in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This document is your guide of how to effectively utilise the test kits given to you by the Hospice.
Testing is important because;
- It protects our Children, Young people, families, staff and visitors
- Prevents and controls outbreaks by identifying cases early
- Provides reassurance, allowing those who test negative to carry on working
Types of COVID-19 test
If you are working or volunteering in one of our retail units you will not need to change any process currently in place. The following if for onsite staff and volunteers only.
We will be changing our testing model to the incorporate the below two tests for all Hospice staff;
- Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests – which are over 99% effective and pick up positive results at early and late stages of the virus. Completed tests are sent to a lab for processing.
- Rapid lateral flow tests – which are effective at detecting virus in those with high levels of coronavirus in their system. Results are given within 30 minutes and kits do not need to be sent to labs for processing.
All PCR tests must be completed on a Monday.
All Lateral Flow tests must be completed on a Monday and Thursday (this overwrites your previous scheduled days)
Detailed guidance on what to do, when to do it and how to report your results can all be found in the document you received with your first set of tests and also on the quick links section below.
If you are working or volunteering in one of our retail units you will not need to change any process currently in place. The following if for on site staff and volunteers only.
If you have any questions, please contact the HR team.
Derian House has a reputation for doing things bigger than anyone else… and our latest fundraising event is no exception – we are giving away a brand new house worth £250,000!
The Great Big House Giveaway officially launched today and will see one lucky person winning the brand new home for just the price of a £5 ticket.
The house, on the award-winning Green Hills development in Feniscowles, Lancashire, was donated by Kingswood Homes.
Staff at Kingswood Homes got involved with Derian last year and were so taken with the work we do following a tour of the hospice, they decided to support us by giving us a house!
The information we all want to know is… can we enter?
The bad news is that no, we can’t.
The terms and conditions of the competition state that “any employees or trustees of Derian House Children’s Hospice and their immediate families at the time of entry” are not eligible to play.
Immediate families means spouse, parent, child, sibling and their respective spouses regardless of where they reside.
Employees of Kingswood Homes or Sterling Management Centre (who are running the prize draw for us) are also ineligible to enter.
The good news is that non immediate family members CAN enter: so that’s your boyfriends, girlfriends, fiancés, aunties, uncles and cousins for instance! Volunteers of Derian House can also enter.
See video interview with David and Kingswood Homes’ Paul Jones here: https://vimeo.com/581075366
And have a look inside the house here: https://vimeo.com/582166820
We’ll be sharing the prize draw on our social media – please share and help us spread the word!
Here’s a link to the news article for more details: https://www.derianhouse.co.uk/charity-to-give-away-250000-house-in-first-of-its-kind-prize-draw/
Gareth, Jason and our team of volunteers have done a sterling job at putting together the entry for this year’s Community Garden Competition at the Chorley Flower Show, which took place over the weekend.
We are extremely proud to announce that we were given the Silver award from the event judges, with the winners narrowly beating us by one point!
Here’s the wording on our plaque which was read by the event judges and members of the public:
At Derian House we help children and young people, whose lives are too short, to make happy memories in an environment of fun, respect and high quality care.
We provide respite and end-of-life care to more than 400 babies, children and young people across the North West and South Cumbria. During the first coronavirus lockdown, children drew rainbows and put them in windows to show support for key workers.
These homemade rainbows became a sign of hope and a way to show appreciation for the NHS and key workers.
Throughout the pandemic, we offered a lifeline for families caring for a seriously ill child– finding new ways to connect and also taking pressure off the NHS.
In 2021, it will cost us £5 million to run services at Derian House and yet we only receive 12% of the funding we need from the government.
The care and support that we provide is free to families meaning we rely heavily on the generosity of our supporters.
As restrictions continue to ease, particularly relating to self-isolation requirements, there has been some updated guidance issued for Hospices relating to COVID testing.
All Hospice based staff are now asked to complete weekly PCR tests in addition to the twice weekly lateral flow testing we already complete. This testing programme will be introduced here within the next couple of weeks as soon as we have received the supplies of testing kits we need, in the meantime we are putting in place a clear process of how we will manage this and will share this with you as soon as it is finalised.
If you have any questions please ask either myself, Helen H or Ben and we will do our best to answer then but bear with us as we work through the guidance – we may not have all the answers straight away.
Kind Regards,
Lynn Grayson
Clinical Director
For anyone who struggles with the phone lines and transferring a call, please know that you are not alone.
Here is a handy guide so you don’t have to hang up on the person on the receiving end anymore.
It’s also on the Intranet under Departments > General if you wish to print it off for your teams.
Good afternoon everyone,
Below is a link to an IT Training needs assessment form.
We are looking to ensure all staff are comfortable using the current I.T software systems we have in place. Please answer honestly as it means we can review the responses and provide group training as required.
I am conscious the Care Team did something similar recently however just to clarify, this is different and we are looking for the Care Team to complete.
We are aiming for 100% completion on this as we wouldn’t want people to be missed. Thank you in advance everyone.
Dear Colleague,
Our Trustee Board meeting took place via Microsoft Teams on the 14th June 2021 and we had a packed agenda of discussion points and approvals. Prior to the main Board Meeting we also held the Annual General Meetings (AGMs) for the Hospice Charity and also our Shops Business to approve the accounts.
Before we commenced the Board sessions we were joined by our Patron, KiKi DeVille and her colleague, Angus Powell. Both KiKi and Angus are working on the amazing and unique ‘Keepsake Circle’ which is song writing with a group of bereaved Derian families. It was emotional to hear some of the first songs and as soon as we are able we will be sharing these with all of you. We are indebted to them for this unique offering to our families that truly demonstrates why we are Outstanding!
It was announced whilst we were in the Board that the 21st June target for reducing COVID restriction further was to be extended to the 19th July. I do not think this was a surprise to many of us, but of course it is very disappointing as we all hoped for normality to return. COVID is still a focus for the Board and the Senior Management Team (SMT) ensuring we maintain our COVID-Secure process and procedures. We ask everyone to continue to follow these for the maximum safety of our families and each other.
We discussed the continued restoration of our services and it is great to see that we are now operating the majority of activities. It is a credit to everyone at Derian House that we have managed to offer our support to our children, young people and families throughout this pandemic. We also learned that we now have many of our non-clinical teams back at the Hospice and they are enjoying seeing their colleagues again.
The Board reviewed and approved a number of important proposals at this meeting and I will summarise these below.
We are delighted to inform you that the Board approved a 2% salary increase which will be backdated to the 1st April 2021. The increase will be reflected in your July salary. As many of you will be aware, we usually follow the same uplift as given to NHS staff but this announcement has not yet been made. You may have seen in the press that the original proposal for the NHS is 1%, however, this is currently under review. We are keeping a close eye on the pay reviews within the NHS and should anything be agreed that exceeds the 2% we have agreed, we will further review our award.
One of the other proposals we approved stems from the feedback you have given in our staff surveys on our ECO strategy and carbon footprint. In light of those comments the SMT have engaged with a company, Planet Mark, who will work closely with us on reducing our carbon footprint to look after our planet. We are keen to involve every team in this work, so watch this space for details of how you can become involved.
We have also approved an SMT proposal to carry out a viability study to assess the need for a new regional wellbeing centre, led by Derian – very exciting times!!
Our new 2021-2024 headline Strategic Aims have now been agreed and David will share these with you very soon. The SMT will now work on the detail of these Aims which will drive our ambitions and plans for the coming three years. We have also agreed the wording on each Aim with punchier wording and a focus in the first Aim of Providing Outstanding Care. Our recent Needs Assessment has driven many of the Aims as this is the feedback received directly from our families. It is also representative of the wider commissioning community and what they need from Derian House.
The Board would like to thank everyone for their commitment, hard work, continued focus and support. Remember to look after yourselves and your families as we continue through these turbulent times.
Karen Swindley
Chair of Trustees
The 2021 Birdsong Staff Survey is now open.
Please click on the link below to take part;
Apologies that the time between surveys feels short however Birdsong is managed externally and this year it has been released earlier than previous years.
The questionnaire will only take around 10 minutes to complete and includes additional sections on E&D and also COVID.
The survey closes Sunday 27th June 2021 so please make sure you have completed the questionnaire by then.
Thank you in advance for your help with the process. We are committed to making Derian a better place to work and we need your honest opinions to help us improve.
Any questions please feel free to ask either David or myself.
Thomas Hardie Commercials Ltd is raising money for Derian House Children’s Hospice with its eye-catching new vehicle!
The new Volvo Trucks FH Globetrotter demonstrator sits at the centre of the dealer’s ‘Drive it for Derian’ campaign and will be unmissable on the roads with its bright yellow and green design featuring the infamous Derian House mascot, Danni.
Every customer that takes the vehicle will be invited to make a voluntary donation towards the campaign, with the Volvo dealer planning to raise at least £5,000 across the year.
Read about how Thomas Hardie came up with this unique fundraising idea by visiting our blog post below:
Ageism, also called age discrimination, is when you are treated unfavourably because of your age.
Under the Equality Act, you are protected from age discrimination in all aspects of your employment at Derian House including recruitment, employment terms and conditions, promotions and transfers and trainings. The Equality Act protects you from direct discrimination, indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation.
So how do we ensure we do not discriminate against age?
Recruitment – When advertising a job role, we do not include age limits, and we avoid using words which could suggest we are looking for applicants from a particular age group – for example, by using terms such as ‘10 years’ experience’ or ‘enthusiastic young people’. We also don’t ask for dates of birth on any application document until the point when an offer has been made and we are compiling the candidates full personal details.
Terms and Conditions – Our terms and condition remain standardised regardless of age, gender or any other factor. Certain aspects of someone’s terms and conditions may change over time as a reward for length of service (for example annual leave). However, all staff begin employment on the same contract dependant on your area of work.
Promotions and training – With a key value to nurture and develop our people we ensure that all staff receive person centred development. Learning opportunities are offered to all staff based upon developmental need or talent management and we ensure that all staff have the ability to apply for training funding regardless of department. If you are unsure on how to apply for funding, please speak to your line manager of HR. Internal Promotions are always based upon merit and are earnt and are another way in which we nurture and develop our people. We have a clear policy on where there is more than one candidate that meets the criteria for a proposed role, we advertise.
At Derian House we have zero tolerance on any kind of discrimination. If you feel you or someone you work with is a victim of discrimination, please speak to the HR department.