New look NHS Retirement Fellowship unveiled at conference
New look NHS Retirement Fellowship unveiled at conference
SENIOR stakeholders from across the NHS were given the first look of the NHS Retirement Fellowship’s new identity and joined in discussions on how to support retired staff further.
The NHS Retirement Fellowship is the national charity advocating and supporting retired staff throughout the NHS and has branches across the country.But as chief executive John Rostill explained, the organisation needs to do more to attract and recruit younger retirees.
He said: “The Fellowship celebrated its 40th anniversary last year but our numbers now stand at just over 9,000. Given there are more than 1.3 million people working in the NHS, we know we need to do more to support our existing members but also encourage younger retirees to join and ensure our offer is part of their retirement plans.
“We know people are getting younger in terms of health and outlook on life. We felt a fresh, modern branding was needed as part of wider work to suit the needs of millennial retirees.”
Currently the Fellowship offers members benefits including discounts on holidays and cruises, access to accommodation in central London, a pharmacy delivery programme and a travel insurance scheme. There is also a benevolent scheme for members in times of need.
Branches around the country provide trips out, educational opportunities and social activities. The charity also has some part time staff across the country.
Mr Rostill said it was important to the charity to launch its new approach at the NHS Confed conference. “This gave us a great opportunity to talk with NHS leaders about how we can work together to support staff who are coming up to retirement and help NHS organisations meet some of their workforce requirements. The feedback we get from leaders about what staff are saying to them about retirement is crucial in helping us to develop as we go further.”
The photo shows Chief Exec John Rostill and Chair Margaret Moffatt welcoming Antony Tiernan, Director of communications for improvement and development at NHS England to our stall . He said: “It has been a year since we worked with the Fellowship celebrating our 70th and the Fellowship’s 40th – it is lovely to see the refreshed branding and here’s to working together in the future.”
Another visitor to our stall,Prof Andy Hardy, Chief Executive of the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, thought the new branding was excellent – bright and bold. He remarked: “I see the Coventry members most weeks because they have an office based on the executive corridor. The Trust really values their contribution and gives them £1k a year.”
Peter Homa, Chair of the NHS Leadership Academy commented: “I welcome the new launch and am surprised that even more people who retire from the NHS don’t take advantage of the benefits so join the Fellowship!”
Mr Rostill concluded: “Retirement is a life changing experience – some people can’t wait to embrace the freedom and opportunities it enables whilst others are wary of losing a part of their identity and possible loneliness. For a great number of newer retirees it also means time for caring responsibilities for grandchildren or elderly parents. It is only right that the country’s biggest employer has a charity advocating and supporting its staff in retirement and we hope this new branding is the start of a surge in our ability to do that.”