Compassionate Employers is a workplace wellbeing programme delivered by Hospice UK, helping employers look after their people during grief, caring, or terminal illness.
Since 2019, Compassionate Employers has supported over 100,000 employees and their organisations.
Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care Board, comprising all NHS Trusts in our region, joined the programme in September 2023 as the first NHS Integrated Care System to become a Compassionate Employer. Since then, Hampshire and IOW ICB have gone through the assessment process and been awarded a Silver Award, which is a fantastic achievement.
This considered the support from South Central Ambulance Services, Isle of Wight, Hampshire and Isle of Wight ICB, University Hospital Southampton, Solent and Southern Health. Receiving a Silver Award shows a significant commitment to supporting employees through grief, caring, or terminal illness.
Compassionate Employers commended the following standout support during the assessment process:
- Hampshire and Isle of Wight for breaking barriers with a Lived Experience Library where employees courageously share their stories on sensitive topics like baby loss.
- Southern Health for capturing vital data and supporting carers by including caring responsibilities in their yearly survey.
- South Central Ambulance Service was awarded Gold for their internal communications and engagement, thanks to a comprehensive range of support resources.
- Isle of Wight was awarded Gold for their peer support offer and using employee feedback to shape organisational processes.
- University Hospital Southampton offered a generous carer leave policy at nearly double the national industry average.
- And finally, Solent was commended for being the most engaged in relevant awareness events, taking part in six different campaigns related to grief and caring in the last year alone.
Following the launch of Compassionate Employers, Hampshire and IOW ICB employees will have access to a range of benefits, including:
- Unlimited access to the Members’ Hub, including resources and guidance for employees, line managers, and HR teams.
- Unlimited access to the Compassionate Bereavement Conversations e-learning tool, a practical way to practice talking to bereaved colleagues.
- Invitation to join two specialist workshop trainings throughout the year.
- Invitation to join a quarterly member forum with over 20 other organisations.
To find out more about the programme benefits, please refer to the programme poster and Members Hub registration guide.
