Skip to content Skip to search

Promoting NHS jobs

10. How are you doing in promoting NHS jobs to all local communities, supporting those who join you and making visible your success as an employer that welcomes diversity?

By employing local people and making them feel valued as part of the NHS and of their local community you can make a significant contribution to community cohesion. At the same time, given that employment is a key determinant of health, you will be helping to reduce health inequalities.

Self assessment questions

  • Do you have a detailed profile of your workforce in terms of age, gender, ethnic group, place of residence and disability?
  • Do you know how representative your workforce is of the local community?
  • How does your workforce profile vary between senior, high paid posts and more marginal lower paid posts?
  • What policies and approaches do you use to change your workforce profile (at all levels) so that it more closely matches the profile of the local population? 
  • Do you make special efforts to recruit people from the local community? How do you do that?

Some examples of good practice

The NHS has an excellent record in promoting a positive and inclusive ethos and in recruiting and retaining people from a wide diversity of backgrounds (of race, faith, gender, age, disability and sexual orientation). This does not happen by accident. It is important to continually monitor whether the workforce is representative of a changing wider community and whether there are any barriers for people from new communities. East Lancashire PCT works with schools to promote work within the NHS and provide an extended range of work experience placements.