From Local Improvement to National Recognition: Tower Hamlets CHS QI Team Highly Commended at National Patient Safety Awards

A QI team in Tower Hamlets Community Health Services (CHS) has been recognised nationally, receiving a Highly Commended award at the 2026 HSJ Patient Safety Awards. Their project focused on strengthening staff safety by improving the culture around incident reporting and creating an environment where staff felt confident and supported to raise concerns.  

Working collaboratively with colleagues across Tower Hamlets Community Health Services, the team tested and refined a range of change ideas to increase awareness, improve confidence in reporting and create regular opportunities to discuss safety. Through iterative testing and learning using Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) cycles, the team adapted their approach based on staff feedback, ensuring changes were practical and meaningful in day-to-day community settings. Central to the work was the SAFERR approach (Stop, Ask for help, Find out more, Everyone needs to know, Report, Record), a simple framework that helped build confidence and contributed to a 95% increase in staff safety reporting (Fig. 1). The success of the project led to SAFERR being rolled out across Tower Hamlets CHS and embedded into induction, staff training and standard operating procedures.  

Fig. 1: The number of reported violence and aggression incidents in Tower Hamlets Community Health Services 

National recognition may be the outcome, but the real achievement is a culture where staff feel confident to speak up, concerns are acted on and learning is shared. 

 Learn more about the team’s improvement journey and the impact of the SAFERR approach by watching their short video: Taking a SAFERR Approach to Staff Safety Across Tower Hamlets Community Health Services.