NHS England seeks volunteer assessors to help improve care environments

NHS England is encouraging members of the public to volunteer as Patient-Led Assessments of the Care Environment (PLACE) assessors, helping to evaluate the quality of non-clinical environments across NHS organisations.

PLACE assessments are carried out annually by NHS trusts to review aspects of the patient experience beyond clinical care, including cleanliness, food and hydration, privacy and dignity, dementia-friendly environments, and accessibility for people with disabilities. A key feature of the programme is that at least half of each assessment team must be made up of members of the public, ensuring patient and community perspectives help shape improvements to NHS environments.

Volunteers do not need a clinical background to take part. Instead, assessors use their own observations and experiences to provide independent feedback on how welcoming, safe and accessible healthcare settings are for patients, visitors and staff.

NHS England says volunteering as a PLACE assessor offers an opportunity to gain first-hand insight into the NHS estate while contributing to improvements in the environments where care is delivered. Assessments are carried out on a voluntary basis and are designed to support trusts in identifying areas of good practice as well as opportunities for improvement.

Anyone interested in becoming a PLACE assessor can register their interest by completing the NHS England volunteer sign-up form.

Sign up: PLACE Patient Assessor Volunteer registration form

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