Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing and Innovation Hub in the running for national award for its contribution to social value

30th October 2024

The Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing and Innovation Hub, which is part of Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust, has been recognised for its efforts to promote social value through being nominated for a national award.

The Made in Britain Impact Awards have officially listed their finalists for this year with the Northumbria Healthcare Manufacturing and Innovation Hub being nominated in the Social Impact category.

The prestigious awards were launched in 2022 to recognise and celebrate achievements in UK manufacturing.

The Manufacturing and Innovation Hub was the result of a project launched at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic to meet the sudden, growing demand for personal protective equipment (PPE) and other medical equipment. Since its launch in 2020, capacity and capability at the hub have expanded rapidly and they are now producing a range of products including scrubs, theatre hoods, gowns and pillows.

In addition to manufacturing healthcare garments and equipment, the team at the Manufacturing and Innovation Hub have led in many initiatives to support the trust’s Community Promise. This is a formal pledge from Northumbria Healthcare to focus on all the ways it can improve people’s lives based on six key pillars which relate to the wider factors that fuel health inequalities – poverty, employment, education, economy, environment and well-being.

Due to factory closures within the Northumberland area, young people have moved away from pursuing textiles as a career. In response to this, the hub set up an apprenticeship scheme which has enabled people to gain the skills they need to become sewing machinists, textile cutters, warehouse workers and upholsterers. Michael Kildare is currently undertaking his second apprenticeship with the Manufacturing and Innovation Hub; “My role as an upholstery apprentice means I am always learning and expanding my skills and knowledge. Working in a manufacturing setting but for the NHS means that profit is not the main goal and a huge part of what we do is about giving back to those in need.”

In 2023, the team were proud to play a small part in helping those in Ukraine by creating 10,000 blankets to send to those in need. They have also donated surplus PPE (scrubs, gloves and gowns) and wheelchairs to Pickups 4 Peace, a charity dedicated to supplying aid to the people of Ukraine.

Most recently, they welcomed students from Bede Academy as part of a day to highlight careers in healthcare textile manufacturing. The visit provided students with an opportunity to experience careers within the NHS that aren’t healthcare focused, which is a common misconception around careers in the NHS. As part of this project, the hub has also supplied local schools with excess fabric to use in their textile departments and donated surplus furniture to re-kit common rooms and training rooms. This engagement with young people has helped the Manufacturing Hub raise awareness of them as employers and also of the textile industry as a whole.

Reflecting on the news about being finalists, general manager of the Manufacturing and Innovation Hub, Ian Garrett said: “This is a fantastic achievement for all the team. The Manufacturing and Innovation Hub was born in the early days of the pandemic to help local supply of PPE, and it is amazing to see how the hub has grown since then.

“This achievement not only demonstrates how we have grown in our capacity and capability but also how we are pushing the boundaries to help our local and wider communities. We look forward to finding out the results of the awards and continuing to grow our corporate social responsibility endeavours.”

Collette Cunningham, deputy director at Northumbria Healthcare Facilities Management, also expressed her delight about the news: “I am immensely proud of all the team at the Manufacturing and Innovation Hub on this award nomination. This reflects the hard work and dedication from the team to not only create high-quality PPE and uniforms for NHS colleagues across the country but also their commitment to improve the lives of those in our local and wider communities in whatever way they can.”