National Trainee Engagement Forum

HEE is proud to launch its first National Trainee Engagement Forum (NTEF) in March 2021, giving learners a dedicated safe space to provide feedback, communicate ideas and influence educational practice. The NTEF consists of front-line trainees from multiple specialities and from all regions.  The community serves as a sounding board for educational reform, not a decision-making body.  

The importance of engaging with our learners is to enable, empower and inform HEE of the ‘Learner Voice’ and involve the future workforce with education and training policy ideas. Whilst also delivering plans outlined in policy, in particular the 2020/21 NHS People Plan.

Learner feedback and involvement is crucial to the work we do, and we look forward to growing engagement going forward.

Local Trainee Engagement Forum (LTEF)

Postgraduate medical and dental training in England is geographically structured and operated by HEE Local Offices.  Each Local Office hosts a Local Trainee Engagement Forum (LTEF) and/or representatives who liaise with local learners and HEE regional leadership teams.  These individuals form the membership of the National Trainee Engagement Forum (NTEF), providing a two-way communication between front-line medical and dental trainees and HEE centrally.        

Trainee Engagement discussions value themselves as being a regular safe space and opportunity for trainees to offer feedback, share best practice and influence education policy on a local and national level.

National Trainee Engagement Forum (NTEF)

Each local Trainee Engagement representative or LTEF Chair represents their locality in the National Trainee Engagement Forum (NTEF).  This national committee is currently co-chaired and run by Fellows who sit within the Directorate of Education Quality (DEQ) at HEE. The national co-chairs will also serve as the communication link between national HEE and front-line trainees in matters of policy engagement and education reform.     

The NTEF will meet on a quarterly basis at minimum. Minutes from meetings are uploaded to this page.

Webinars and events

As part of HEE’s commitment to increase engagement and accessibility to the wider workforce we continue to host regular webinars and insight events on topical areas of interest.

The aim of these are:

• To introduce a direct and interactive communication interface connecting front-line healthcare learners and HEE.
• To allow the workforce to hear directly from HEE regarding general updates, upcoming changes, reform and important notifications.
• To invite guests to engage with the workforce on topical matters.

The latest National Trainee Engagement Forum (NTEF) Insight Event took place on 16 March 2022 on the theme of Greener NHS and Sustainability. The climate crisis is also a health crisis – but what role does the NHS have to play?

We heard from two prominent healthcare leaders who provided their insights and expertise in this field: Dr Nick Watts, Chief Sustainability Officer of the NHS and Dr Tim Ferris, National Director of Transformation at NHS England and NHS Improvement, with opening and closing remarks from Dr Navina Evans, Chief Executive HEE and Professor Wendy Reid, Director of Education & Quality and Medical Director HEE. The recording can be viewed below:

The first NTEF Insight Event was on the topic of how HEE and trainees can help tackle health inequalities. The event featured guest speaker Prof Chris Whitty and HEE Medical Director Prof Wendy Reid. The recording can be viewed below.

Recordings of webinars and online events will be uploaded to the HEE YouTube channel. If you would like to make a suggestion for what we should cover in our next webinar, or you wish to submit a question for an upcoming webinar, please email NTEF@hee.nhs.uk.

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