THE trust which runs Basingstoke hospital has been re-accredited as running a gold standard work experience programme for young people.

Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust has been re-accredited by the Work Experience Quality Standard, a national accreditation recognising organisations offering high quality work experience opportunities.

The trust applied to be recognised as operating at gold level two years ago and an audit at the end of 2017 confirmed that Hampshire Hospitals is still running an exemplary programme to help young people get a taste of a workplace environment.

Over the last 12 months, Hampshire Hospitals provided placements for over 250 students aged 15 and over in a range of placements varying from non-clinical roles in areas such as administration and medical records, to shadowing senior medical staff and clinical staff on wards.

Jude Davison, head of education and workforce development for the trust said: “We are thrilled with the re-accreditation. It’s really important that young people can make informed decisions when thinking about what path they want to take. By offering placements from one to five days, students see first-hand what they might like to work towards, and hopefully feel inspired to work with us again in the future. “

Donna Green, chief nurse at Hampshire Hospitals, which also runs Royal Hampshire County Hospital, in Winchester, and Andover War Memorial Hospital said: “Learning and development is incredibly important for all our staff, and for us this starts as early as offering opportunities to young people through our work experience programme. We are really proud of the opportunities we offer students here at Hampshire Hospitals, and I want to give thanks to the team who work so hard to make sure young people have a valuable work placement at the Trust.”