HCRG Care Group shortlisted for HSJ Partnership Award for Workforce and Wellbeing alongside NHS Trust
Caption: A promotional graphic for the HSJ Partnership Awards 2026. The background features a dark blue geometric pattern with lighter blue triangular shapes scattered throughout.
Community specialist HCRG Care Group, working in partnership with Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board (BSW ICB), Surrey Heartlands Integrated Care Board, and Leicester and Rutland Integrated Care Board, has been shortlisted for Workforce and Wellbeing Initiative of the Year at the HSJ Partnership Awards 2026.
The nomination recognises the impact of a large-scale Onboarding and Workforce Wellbeing Programme, designed to support the safe and successful transfer of 3,306 colleagues into HCRG Care Group following the award of three flagship NHS contracts in autumn 2024. The programme supported colleagues transferring under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations from 14 incumbent providers across BSW, Surrey, and Leicester & Rutland.
Paul Lundbeck, HCRG’s People Director, said: “Over the past year, we’ve worked closely with our NHS partners to support more than 3,000 colleagues through a major period of change. From the outset, the focus was on making people feel welcomed, supported and ready to do their jobs, while ensuring patients continued to receive safe, high-quality care.
“We’re really proud of what’s been achieved together and grateful to everyone who played a part – from the teams delivering the programme to the colleagues who shared their experiences and helped shape it. Looking after our workforce matters, because when people feel supported, services are stronger. Being shortlisted for this award is a genuine reflection of that collective effort.”
The scale of the mobilisation represented a 60% increase in HCRG Care Group’s workforce and prehelped avoid significant risks to staff wellbeing, morale and service continuity. In response, the partnership developed a structured, staff-centred onboarding approach that prioritised wellbeing while maintaining safe, uninterrupted patient care.
A wellbeing-led approach to large-scale mobilisation
Building on learning from previous service transfers, the programme combined practical onboarding with targeted wellbeing support. It included a digital onboarding portal and app, redesigned induction, in-person and virtual welcome events, and a flexible manager development framework to support leaders through change.
Discovery workshops with transferring staff helped shape the programme, identifying common frustrations from previous transitions such as delayed access to IT systems, lack of clear communication and uncertainty around organisational processes. These insights ensured the approach focused on what mattered most to colleagues joining the organisation.
The ambition was clear: to create a welcoming, consistent experience that reduced stress, built confidence and fostered a sense of belonging from the outset – while protecting operational readiness and service delivery for patients.
Clear outcomes for staff, services and partners
The programme supported colleagues at every stage of the transfer, with sentiment monitoring embedded throughout. Key outcomes included:
Improved staff sentiment throughout and after transfer, with survey results showing increasing positivity and engagement
Strong operational readiness, with colleagues joining services equipped with IT access, uniforms and logins from day one
Improved manager confidence, supported by flexible, practical development sessions aligned to service demands
Reduced onboarding delays and fewer local workarounds, supporting continuity of patient care
Two months after mobilisation, staff feedback rated HCRG Care Group as a ‘good’ employer, placing it among the top health and care organisations measured at the time.
A scalable model for the NHS
Although developed initially to support three major mobilisations, the programme has since been adapted for wider use across HCRG Care Group. Its modular induction design, manager development framework and feedback-driven improvements are now shaping onboarding practice for new starters across the organisation.
The programme has also demonstrated flexibility across different contexts – supporting large-scale transfers in BSW, tailored approaches in Surrey, and more targeted delivery in Leicester & Rutland – establishing a scalable model that can be applied to future NHS workforce transitions.
Commissioners across all three systems have welcomed the structured, staff-focused approach, recognising the link between workforce wellbeing and safe, high-quality patient care.
Built with staff and partners
Staff, managers and system partners were involved throughout the design and delivery of the programme. Discovery workshops, sentiment surveys and continuous feedback loops ensured the approach evolved in response to colleague experience.
Joint working through multi-agency communications and engagement groups, including incumbent providers and system partners, supported transparency and consistency, while tailored delivery ensured smaller cohorts received the same quality of support as larger transfers.
By placing staff experience at the heart of mobilisation, the programme strengthened trust, improved morale and ensured a safe and seamless transition of services for patients during a period of significant change.
PR by Reeves in Birmingham and Newcastle-upon-Tyne.