CLCH celebrates Black History Month 2020!

CLCH holds its largest Black History Month celebrations yet! 

Last month, Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust (CLCH) held its largest ever Black History Month celebrations! 

As CLCH continues to support the NHS response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, throughout October, the Trust held virtual events, lunchtime sessions, shared staff stories and more, to celebrate the fantastic contributions and achievements of staff from African and Caribbean communities. 

The events were spearheaded by the Trust’s Race Equality Network (REN). The network is open to all staff and provides an amazing platform for colleagues to share information and resources, and celebrate cultural diversity. During Black History Month, the varied programme of activities included: 

• a Black History Month virtual quiz night 

• special weekly webinars: hosted by colleagues across the Trust with topics including allyship and unconscious bias 

• 'Let's Talk Culture' 30-minute lunchtime virtual sessions: hosted by black colleagues across the Trust who shared valuable insights into their culture 

• staff blogs and stories. 

CLCH also held its annual Race Equality Conference, which is always a big highlight in the Trust’s calendar. The conference was held virtually and had the highest attendance in the events history, with many tuning in to hear inspiring and empowering talks from Joan Myers OBE (Director and Trustee, Florence Nightingale Foundation), Jummy Dawodu (Director of Operations, South West), Charlie Sheldon (Executive Lead for Equality and Tackling Inequality, and Chief Nurse) and more!

Our Race Equality Network Co-Chair, Judith Davis said: “I was blown away by the quality of the speakers and their content at our REN conference. It was truly inspirational! I am pleased that the network is growing - a thousand voices is greater than 10! Our equality journey has begun”.

The Trust also took part in the NHS in London’s ‘faces of the NHS’ campaign to celebrate inspiring Black Londoners. For the campaign, Trusts were invited to nominate Black Londoners who have made important contributions to their Trust, local area or the wider society. Mary Makarau (HIV Coordinator) was put forward as the face of CLCH for her outstanding contributions to our patients and revealed alongside 36 prominent individuals in an interactive online map representing NHS Trusts in the capital.