Northamptonshire Healthcare has a strong track record of delivering financial targets and the Trust is always keen to improve budgetary performance at all levels across the organisation.
The Trust undertook a number of initiatives in 2008/09. These included a development programme for non-executive directors, which covered commercial awareness and a review of the effectiveness of the Finance and Performance Committee.
The Trust has now introduced a monthly risk assessment position statement to help Directors fully understand the impact of financial risks in delivering financial targets. Finance action sheets are produced after Finance and Performance Committee meetings then routinely monitored and followed up.
As a result of improving financial awareness, the trust virtually eradicated nursing agency expenditure in 2008/09.