Putting our people at the heart of our hospital

People told us they are looking forward to working in a new, purpose-built environment that offers natural light and airy spaces.

We heard lots of questions about how space and equipment will be used and stored in the hospital, and what designated areas and facilities will be available for children, young people, families and carers, and staff.

People want to know more about:

• Access to working, rest and changing space for staff
• Space for confidential discussions
• Spaces and equipment that are appropriate for children and young people of all ages
• How equipment will be stored, shared and moved around the hospital
• Access to outdoor space
• Facilities to buy, prepare or cook food for staff and families / carers
• Safety travelling between buildings at night

Cambridge Children’s Hospital will be on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus. This raised concerns about the practical logistics of parking (availability and cost), travel and access to the hospital, for both staff and patients.

There was lots of positivity about the opportunities a new child-centred specialist hospital will bring for improved patient care, with many services under one roof. There was widespread agreement that providing holistic care for the whole child and being able to deliver physical and mental healthcare in the same space will be hugely beneficial.

We heard some questions, concerns and ideas about:

• The patient pathway between the children’s hospital and emergency department and outpatients
• Ensuring a smooth and caring experience from before patients are admitted to when they return home or to the community
• Providing care for both physical health and mental health patients, and ensuring all patients stay safe, including safeguarding from absconsion
• Ensuring patients and their families or carers don’t feel isolated in individual rooms and this doesn’t negatively impact on daily movement
• Supporting patients, especially those with a mental health need, to feel less like they are in a clinical environment as part of their treatment and recovery
• Opportunities to better integrate learning and play
• Providing better support, advice and resources to families and carers, including the use of technology
• Ensuring CCH is not just a building but reaches into the community

There was lots of enthusiasm for working together better to create the best environment for patients, with people motivated to create connections, break down silos, better understand each other’s services and ways of working and find ways to improve the care they can offer. People discussed the opportunities of shared multi-disciplinary team meetings, thinking and working differently together, and a ‘fresh start’ with lots of room for innovation. Lots of people talked about the importance of feeling part of a single and unified children's hospital team while at the same time retaining their 'home team' and their identity as a specialist in their field.

Leaders are seen to be critical in advocating for, and bringing to life, the vision of Cambridge Children's Hospital. They have an important role in supporting their staff to work together as one team, and role modelling the partnership between the organisations involved.

We also heard some concerns around reduced connections with teams who will not be on site and the potential for silos to continue despite co-location. There was also fear about losing some sense of identity. People were particularly keen to think about the practicalities of working with new teams, understanding who does what and ensuring teams on and off site are included and integrated. Discussions were also focused on the physical symbols of identity and belonging, such as name badges, lanyards and uniforms.

There were other questions around employment contracts, pay bands and benefits when bringing multiple organisations together.

There were, naturally, concerns raised about staffing levels and how the new hospital will be sufficiently resourced. Some concerns were raised about potential increases in workload and about how the transition to the new hospital will be managed. We also heard concerns about out of hours and on-call cover and how rotas will be managed for teams working across more than one site.

There was enthusiasm about the opportunities that an integrated model of care will bring in terms of career development and the opportunity to develop new skills, including in research. Others shared concerns about whether their role will change, the type of training that will be provided and ensuring mandatory training only has to be completed once.

Watch this video for an explanation of what an integrated model of care means for staff training, skills and development.

People shared some of their ideas and anticipation about being able to consider which digital tools, including artificial intelligence, could be used to enhance the patient, family and carer, and staff experience.

Others wanted assurance about the electronic patient record system that will be used, access to computers and systems and making sure the digital tools we select will be fit for purpose in the future.

There was lots of optimism and excitement about the opportunities Cambridge Children's Hospital brings for greater integration of clinical care and research activities, giving staff and patients the opportunity to be more aware of, and involved in, research and becoming global leaders and influencers.

We heard that there is a lot of work to be done to turn this vision into a reality – but a real commitment to making it happen!

Staff told us that they would like more information about the progress and decisions being made within the Cambridge Children’s Hospital project, with varying levels of awareness and knowledge about the plans so far.

People appreciated the opportunity to be involved in the focus groups and would like to have more opportunities to contribute and have their voices heard.

Latest information and opportunities to be involved:

• Our staff FAQs are updated regularly, and now include responses to many of the questions raised through the focus groups
• New bitesize information emails will be delivered directly to staff inboxes. Contact us if you’d like to be added to the mailing list.
• Open Q&A sessions take place at CUH and CPFT. We will send information about these to your inboxes, but also advertise on your internal Trust channels.
• Bespoke sessions with individual teams and services are taking place throughout the year.
• Speak with your line manager to see how you can be involved or contact us if you have something specific you want to discuss.

Coming soon:

• The second cohort of Frontrunners will open for applications in autumn 2025. Frontrunners is our transformation programme designed to help staff drive forward meaningful change in their current work environments while preparing for the transition to the new hospital.
• We are developing plans for some Communities of Practice to bring together groups of people working in similar roles across different organisations. More information coming soon.