The Trust wanted to improve the readability, usefulness and accessibility of its annual report. It distributed a questionnaire to patients and members of the public who form the Trust's People Panel, requesting feedback on both the format and content of the previous annual report and to seek views on ideas for the next one.
The Trust took the feedback into account when designing its 2008/09 annual report, dividing it into two sections:
- News section - this is at the front of the annual report and adopts the style of a news magazine highlighting progress made over the year. Articles feature quotes from staff, patients and the public, supported by lots of pictures to make the information more digestible and attractive for the reader.
- Accounts and information section - this incorporates the statutory and financial information required for the annual report. These pages have a different background colour to ensure clear division. Additional information on the key challenges that the Trust faced during the year and a balanced review of its performance against objectives have also been included in this section.
The Trust is using its annual report as one of the information sources for its Foundation Trust consultation meetings and stakeholder engagement events. By adopting a colourful, interactive news style, the Trust has avoided the need to prepare a second information document for its Foundation Trust thereby ensuring maximum value for money.