Chief AHP's blog

Date of release: 31 October 2024

AHPs in the spotlight

By Ros Leslie

AHPs Day, celebrated annually across England on October 14, is when the AHP community connects and celebrates the 14 diverse professions– and this month we had plenty to celebrate at RWT!

Following the success of previous Black Country AHP Summits, AHP leaders, educators, researchers, and support workers from the Black Country attended our third AHP Leadership Summit at Himley Hall.

I’m thrilled that we had three winners from RWT. Charlotte Shillito, Highly Specialist Speech and Language Therapist, won the AHP Workforce Transformation Award, Jen Cartwright was the winner of the AHP Council Award, and Charlotte Colesby, Deputy Chief AHP/Speech and Language Therapy Services Manager, won the Excellence Award for Regional/National Impact.

Charlotte Shillito receiving her trophy as AHP Workforce Transformation Award winner – acknowledging individual AHPs, AHP support workers or teams demonstrating transformation through innovation in AHP workforce – for RWT and the Black Country ICS, from Caroline Walker, interim Group Chief Executive at RWT and Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust.

Hosted by the Black Country AHP Council, the summit was an opportunity to celebrate AHPs Day together as an Integrated Care System (ICS), and to share examples of best practice and collaborative working.

Attendees heard from key speakers from the Black Country NHS Trusts, including Jen Cartwright, RWT’s Specialist Physiotherapist and currently Education Programme Lead for the Black Country ICS People Programme, Hardeep Sidhu and Tara Langford, Speech and Language Therapy Support Workers, and Dr Ali Aries, AHP Research Lead.

To close the event, an award ceremony was hosted by Sally Roberts, Chief Nursing Officer for the Black Country Integrated Care Board, highlighting the innovative work being carried out by AHPs across the Black Country ICS. 

This year, the day was an opportunity to showcase the incredible impact AHPs have on the delivery of care, with quality and safety being the key theme. This aligns with the AHP strategy for England (2022-2027): AHPs Deliver.

The actual AHPs Day 2024 began with Professor Suzanne Rastrick, Chief Allied Health Professions Officer of England, making a live address.

Charlotte Colesby, right, in the selfie frame with Dr Ros Leslie, left, and Dr Ananth Viswanath, interim Chief Medical Officer at RWT

There followed three RWT events, including an opportunity to meet our AHPs in the Emergency Department marquee and the chance to test your AHP-knowledge with our quiz. 

Before lunch, our annual welcome event took place in the Wolverhampton Medical Institute (WMI), formally welcoming all new starters to our AHP teams.

During this we shared inspirational career journeys and advised new staff of the support and opportunities available at RWT. 

Events concluded with individuals and teams being recognised with RWT AHP Awards, presented by Caroline Walker, Interim Group Chief Executive. You can see a summary of events in this video.

There was another opportunity to showcase AHPs at an AHP Career Insight Day in the WMI, with around 70 school students and teachers learning about AHPs in the NHS and their roles in patient care.

It was an interactive session, with students split into groups; each spending 30 minutes with each profession. 

Each group could understand the role of each profession, requirements for training, and opportunities for career progression.

Congratulations to everyone who was nominated!