The PEN Awards recognise best practice in patient experience across health and social care, celebrating person-centred care and highlighting programmes that improve experiences.
We've been shortlisted in the following categories:
- Developing the Capability for Person Centered Care
- Equity in Experience
- Excellence in Personalised Care
- From Insight to Impact
- Digital and Technology Innovation for Experience
- Leadership and Governance for Experience Excellence
- Support Operations Excellence in Improving Experience
- Long Term Improvement in Experience of Care
Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony on Thursday 1 October - good luck to all of our teams!
Shortlisted Projects:
Expanding the reach of reasonable adjustments: The Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire (BNSSG) Cancer Improvement Collaborative
Delivered in partnership with Somerset, Wiltshire, Avon and Gloucestershire (SWAG) Cancer Alliance and Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care Board (BNSSG ICB), with support from the National Institute for Health and Care Research Applied Research Collaboration West.
This project focused on improving cancer care for people with disabilities and long-term conditions by expanding the reach and understanding of reasonable adjustments. The team developed a practical e-learning module for healthcare professionals to address barriers across the cancer pathway, identified through research involving patients and carers. The module was designed to take no more than 15 minutes to complete in order to improve uptake by recognising how busy staff already are and minimising the additional demand on their time. A short video aimed at patients was also produced, inviting them to share their accessibility needs. The training has been rolled out across acute, primary and community care settings, with 72% of staff reporting themselves as ‘extremely confident’ in applying reasonable adjustments after completing the training, compared to just 12% previously.
Shortlisted categories:
- Developing the Capability for Person Centered Care
- Equity in Experience
- Excellence in Personalised Care
- From Insight to Impact
Improving patient experience of cancer care: learning from insights shared by people diagnosed with cancer at Southmead Hospital
Delivered in partnership with SWAG Cancer Alliance.
The team worked with patients, carers and staff to design a real time cancer experience survey that provides timely insights across the full cancer pathway and compliments the National Cancer Patient Experience Survey. Insights from the survey are immediately available and easy to use, displaying trends and demographic information that allow teams to spot themes early, check the effect of service changes and make improvements far sooner than the annual cycle allows. The survey was co-designed with patients, carers and multi-disciplinary teams and has seen an improved response rate compared to other patient feedback surveys. Results are fed into quarterly reviews and monitored through Cancer Board and have already led to significant improvements in communication and administrative support, as well as amplifying underrepresented voices and enabling targeted equity work.
Shortlisted categories:
- Developing the Capability for Person Centred Care
- Digital and Technology Innovation for Experience
- Leadership and Governance for Experience Excellence
- Support Operations Excellence in Improving Experience
Patient Conversations and Walk & Talk
‘Patient Conversations’ is a volunteer-led, real-time listening programme developed to transform how patient experience feedback is captured and acted upon by enabling patients to discuss what matters most to them whilst they are still receiving care. Rather than asking predefined questions, trained volunteers engage patients in open conversations led by what matters most to them. This provides richer insight, uncovers issues that may not be identified through surveys, and helps patients feel genuinely listened to. Since its launch in November 2023, the programme has delivered 720 conversations, contributed to an increase from 8% to 31% of patients reporting they were asked for their views, and generated immediate improvements for patients across the Trust. Following its success, ‘Walk & Talk’ was introduced in April 2026 to take listening opportunities directly to patients, carers and visitors through a mobile Patient Experience Trolley stocked with information resources, wellbeing items and practical support materials, which has engaged over 100 patients, carers and visitors so far.
Shortlisted categories:
- Long Term Improvement in Experience of Care
- From Insight to Impact