Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (MCHFT) has been awarded the NHS Pastoral Care Quality Award for its best-practice pastoral support in international recruitment.

The Trust, which manages Leighton Hospital in Crewe as well as Victoria Infirmary in Northwich, and Elmhurst Intermediate Care Centre in Winsford, employs almost 5,000 members of staff and has 540 hospital beds, with a range of services including accident and emergency, maternity, outpatients, therapies, and children's health.

The prestigious award reflects the trust's ongoing commitment to providing high-quality pastoral support to internationally educated nurses and midwives.

It also reflects the dedicated work being carried out to ensure staff receive enhanced and tailored pastoral care at the start of their NHS journey and beyond.

Julie Mitchell, Project Lead Cheshire International Recruitment Collaborative (CIRC) said: "We are delighted that the Trust has been awarded the NHSE Pastoral Care Quality Award for ongoing commitment to providing best practice pastoral support to internationally educated nurses and midwives.

"It reflects the feedback from International nurses, which has consistently been positive and confirms that they are fully supported throughout the onboarding process and their OSCE training."

Indra Kunder, Pastoral Support for Internationally Educated Nurses said: "This is a great achievement for the Trust and shows the commitment that the organisation offers our colleagues from overseas. Well done to everyone involved."