Freedom to speak up

Freedom to Speak Up is about creating a culture where people feel safe and confident to raise concerns, and know they will be listened to and taken seriously.

At UHDB, we encourage colleagues to speak up about anything that may affect their ability to do their job well. This includes concerns about patient safety, staff wellbeing, quality of care, working practices or behaviours.

Our Freedom to Speak Up Guardians offer independent, confidential support to help colleagues raise concerns.


Who this service is for

This service is mainly for people working within the organisation, including:

  • Current and former employees

  • Bank and agency staff

  • Volunteers

  • Students and trainees

  • Contractors


How the Guardians can help

The Freedom to Speak Up Guardians:

  • Provide a confidential and impartial listening service

  • Help colleagues understand their options and raise concerns safely

  • Support a culture of openness and learning


They do not carry out investigations. Information shared will be handled sensitively, although there may be times when it needs to be shared to help keep people safe or ensure concerns are addressed.


Contact the Freedom to Speak Up Guardians

To speak up or get advice, contact:


Information for patients and the public

The Freedom to Speak Up service is designed to support staff.

If you are a patient, relative, carer or member of the public, there are other services better placed to help with your concern. The Guardians are not able to investigate public complaints, provide updates on care, or respond to issues unrelated to staff speaking up.

But your feedback really matters to us. We want to hear about your experience - whether that’s something that went well, something we could improve, or a concern about care.

The 'your feedback' section of our website > will give you all the information you need to get in touch.