Celebrating the success of East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust’s first Mary Seacole Local cohort 

Recently, the NHS North West Leadership Academy had the privilege of working with East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust as they delivered their first Mary Seacole Local (MSL) cohort. 

This programme is designed to equip future leaders with the practical skills and personal insight needed to drive meaningful change within the NHS. The Mary Seacole Local Programme offers the same high-quality leadership development as the nationally recognised Mary Seacole Programme, funded and delivered locally through the NHS North West Leadership Academy, providing additional development capacity to NHS organisations across the North West region and delivered at a cost of £150 per participant.

One such participant, Stephen Oppong-Kyere from East Lancashire Hospitals NHS Trust, shared his reflections on how the programme has transformed his approach to leadership:

“For someone who has been avoiding leadership roles for a while, I chose to enrol on MSL not only to broaden my understanding and knowledge in leadership, but also to honour the opportunity my supervisors gave me. I perceived leadership to be for people born with some inherent qualities until I started the programme. I now truly understand that everyone can be a leader with the right training, knowledge, mentorship, and guidance. 

“I learnt a great deal from the programme however delegation and conflict management stood out to me. I used to do everything myself and this usually led to not completing most of my jobs and running out of energy after every shift. I learnt how and why to delegate through MSL. It has significantly improved my task completion, improved the skills of others I work with and conserves my energy as well. Also, as we find ourselves in a human society, conflict will be part of every day. MSL introduced me to the Thomas-Kilmann model to assess and handle conflict situations. I now do not try to avoid conflicts when they arise but instead have a model to utilise to solve them. 

“In addition, I cannot talk about the programme without mentioning the HLM 360° assessment. It brought to light some positive feedback I never knew about myself and areas of development to look into to successfully lead others. I would recommend participation in the HLM 360° assessment to know what others think about your leadership style. 

“MSL not only gave me the chance to meet colleagues from other departments, but also introduced me to people in higher positions in the Trust. Colleagues who participated in the programme came from different backgrounds and cultures with vast experience and knowledge from their field of work; sharing their experiences has shaped my perspective of leadership. I had the opportunity to meet facilitators from the Organisational Development team who have inspired me, and they put me in touch with the DERI team for coaching and mentorship. 

“In conclusion, I will say this valuable programme not only brings out the leadership qualities in you but also equips you with other aspects of leadership you have no idea about.” 

The NHS North West Leadership Academy extends warm congratulations to all participants for completing their Mary Seacole Local journey. Their progress reflects a shared commitment to growing leadership capability across the NHS and fostering a culture of compassionate, inclusive, and innovative leadership.