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Trust's Women's Network shines spotlight on flexible working

23/04/2018
This article is more than five years old.

The newly-launched Women's Network at the Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust held their second meeting in April 2018.

The network, launched in March 2018 on International Women's Day, was created to provide a monthly space for staff across the Trust to come together and discuss issues that disproportionately affect women.

The first meeting discussed the gender pay gap, and the second meeting tackled the topic of flexible working. The next meeting will discuss sexual harassment.

Dame Fiona Caldicott, Chairman of OUH and a role model for women in the NHS as the first female President of the Royal College of Psychiatrists, attended. She said: "We want a wider appreciation of what does and doesn't work with flexible working. Our staff's needs are as unique as each individual is, and we need to better understand those.

"The Trust has a flexible working policy for staff. However we're aware that we should balance flexibility with our duty to provide a service. The meeting gave us an opportunity to listen to staff's opinions and concerns, and share successful strategies for flexible working.

"The first meeting on the gender pay gap fed directly into an action plan to address that, and I think that staff input at these meetings is an essential part of bringing about change."