NHS Trust’s film encourages staff to be sustainable
South West Yorkshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust has launched an innovative film to raise awareness of 
sustainability amongst its staff.
The film focusses on four areas; procurement, community venues, waste recycling and energy and promotes the small actions staff can take to make a big difference towards a more sustainable future.
The Trust, which provides a range of community, mental health and learning disability services to the people of Barnsley, Calderdale, Kirklees and Wakefield employs over 4,700 people.
The Trust has already introduced a number of measures to make its environments more sustainable including installing motion-censor lighting, energy efficient boilers and promoting schemes such as bike to work and car sharing. In the last 8 years the Trust has reduced energy use by nearly 20%.
Dawn Stephenson, director of corporate development explained, “The Trust is committed to being a socially responsible and sustainable organisation and has already introduced a number of important initiatives to help which not only help the environment and our local communities but also contribute towards significant financial savings.
“We must ensure continued understanding amongst our large and varied workforce. Rather than taking staff away from their day jobs for training we have made this short film as a quick and easy way to raise awareness and help all staff play their part.
“Being sustainable is everyone’s responsibility and the film highlights the small steps that we can all take in our NHS jobs. These include purchasing sustainable products, recycling waste, choosing community venues for meetings or events and switching off lights and electrical equipment when not in use.
“By taking these steps, it not only helps the Trust continue to be a sustainable organisation but it also saves money which can be reinvested into services for local people.”
All staff at the Trust will be encouraged to watch the film and pass the message on to implement more sustainable approaches into their working life.
View the film and find out more about sustainability at the Trust.