This week we held an event to both celebrate national NHS Big Tea day and to launch a new Staff Serenity Room at Leighton Hospital.
The room has been created to provide a quiet, calm environment where staff can take time out of their busy day to find a few moments of peace.
We were very pleased that Leighton Hospital porter Tony Burton agreed to officially open the room by cutting the ribbon, alongside his colleague Tommy and MCHT Director of Workforce and OD Heather Barnett. Tony spent a number of months in hospital last year seriously ill with COVID and has only recently returned to work to the delight of his colleagues across the hospital.
We now have a total of eight Serenity rooms across the hospital which have been furnished using funds donated to the charity to support staff wellbeing. As well as receiving funds from our local communities, last year we also received several grants from NHS Charities Together which enabled us to provide these valuable facilities for our staff.
On the day we welcomed over 300 staff to the room for a look around and to enjoy a brew on us whilst ‘raising a cuppa’ to the NHS. For our colleagues working at our community bases we sent out hampers filled with mugs, tea bags and treats for them to enjoy too.
Emma Robertson MCH Charity Manager said: 'We're thrilled to see the room finally open and available to all staff at the hospital 24 hours a day. The room has a real feeling of calm about it and will hopefully provide staff who need to take a few moments away from work some peace and serenity.
'We've been working with the Trust's Staff Health and Wellbeing Board throughout the pandemic to identify and develop projects to support staff wellbeing, so we're very proud to see this project come to fruition today.'
