How does a Foundation Trust work?

Foundation Trusts (FTs) were established in 2003 and are independent public benefit corporations. Foundation Trusts are very much part of the NHS family and are still subject to NHS systems of inspection against national standards for quality and safety by the Care Quality Commission and other regulatory bodies.

Reasons for pursuing Foundation Trust status include:

• Moving away from central control will place the governance of local services in the hands of local people – we believe that this local direction will help us plan our services more wisely and get better value for money

• A large, representative membership will build a strong support base to help us influence the planning of services in Mid Essex and beyond

• We will be allowed to manage our finances more flexibly and use our surpluses to invest in hospital services and clinical equipment

• Staff will have a greater say in the running of the Hospital

As part of the application process, we must consult on both our organisational strategy and our proposed governance arrangements.

Changes to the way the hospital will be managed

As a Foundation Trust, the way that we are run and governed will change.

Under our new governance arrangements we will have:

• A general membership

• A Council of Governors

• A Board of Directors

We aim to develop a wide membership that is fully representative of the diversity of the people we employ and the communities we serve.