The Royal Devon University Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust is thrilled to announce that its Living with and Beyond Cancer (LWBC) team was part of the group that won the Workforce Initiative of the Year award at this year’s HSJ Awards.

The award was given to the Cheshire & Merseyside Cancer Alliance’s supportive and assistive programme, part of the national Aspirant Cancer Career and Education Development (ACCEND) programme, which supports the cancer workforce with their career pathways and associated education, training, learning and development opportunities.

John Gale, Senior Programme Manager for the Cheshire & Merseyside Cancer Alliance, said: “While the Cheshire & Merseyside Cancer Alliance oversees and supports this programme, our success is a result of genuine collaboration across various systems, organisations, and locations throughout the UK.

“I wanted to take a moment to thank the team from the Royal Devon for their invaluable contributions to this programme and their leadership in building a blended and personalised approach to the delivery of its Foundations of Cancer Care. Their hard work and dedication has not gone unnoticed, and we truly appreciate all their efforts.”

Gareth Ballyn, Project Officer for the Living with and Beyond Cancer team – Eastern services, represented the Royal Devon at the awards ceremony.

Throughout 2024, the Royal Devon’s Exeter-based cancer support workers have been piloting a blended approach to delivering the Foundations of Cancer Care, which is part of the ACCEND programme. This blended approach was designed by the Exeter LWBC team, and their evaluation and findings will be shared with the ACCEND national steering group. They will also be contributing to an article about the Foundations of Cancer Care which will be published nationally during 2025.

Tina Grose, Lead Cancer Nurse at the Royal Devon, said: “Investing in education has always been a priority and it’s so good to see this reaching across new areas of working. We have been building our cancer support worker workforce over the past years and I’m proud of their achievements and the difference they are making across the cancer patient pathway.”

The HSJ Awards took place on Thursday 21 November. Its annual ceremony shines a light on the outstanding efforts and achievements of healthcare workers across the entire sector. This year, 1,351 entries were received across 26 categories, with 235 organisations, projects and individuals making it to the final shortlist.

Alastair McLellan, Editor of the HSJ, said: “Year on year, I’m always so impressed by the innovation, dedication, and integrity of all those who take the time to submit an entry to the HSJ Awards. This year has been no exception.”