The HSJ Awards occur every year and it’s the most prestigious event in NHS calendar. It is a celebration of success stories whereby all Trusts throughout the UK come together as one. The awards are an esteemed accolade of healthcare service excellence in the UK and at Hope-FX we were delighted to be short listed for the category Early Intervention Young Adults.
Each program for HOPE-FX is unique and different to the needs of young adult and the client Hope-FX works with. In this particular instance the client is the North London Mental Health Trust and supports young adults that have various mental health conditions.
For this fashion program we teamed up with FashionCapital.co.uk HSJ Award Finalist for the HOPE – FX Project – FashionCapital and Fashion-Enter Ltd (FEL) to provide the opportunity to design, create and sell a range of T-shirts. Each of the young adults received total wrap-around support and tuition from the team during the six month period, and are provided with training in fashion illustration, pattern cutting, sewing skills, traditional and digital printing techniques, and state-of-the-art digital, ethical technologies. The course culminates with a photoshoot and a launch party at FEL’s Islington shop.
Healthcare and the fashion sector might seem like worlds apart, however, the HOPE-FX project successfully brought the two together. Working with Barnet Enfield and Haringey Mental Health NHS Trust and Camden and Islington NHS Foundation Trust, the team trialed the HOPE-FX initiative that gets young people actively involved and learning new creative skills and there was a 100% success rate. Everyone on the program stayed until the end and are currently and have moved on from support from the trusts.
The HSJ Awards is now in its 44th year, the number and quality of entries was greater than ever in 24. Whilst we did not win the category Hope-FX is continuing with North London NHS Foundation Trust in 2025 with a larger program across all five boroughs!
Jenny Holloway commented: “We were absolutely honoured that this new program that we have developed with Zac Holloway had been recognised by the a highly impressive judging panel which included NHS England Medical Director Sir Stephen Powis, NICE chief executive Sam Roberts, NHS elective care tsar Sir Jim Mackey, Department of Health director general Matthew Style, and Professor Steve Turner, the president of the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health, amongst numerous others. It is with absolute grateful thanks to Sir Norman Lamb, the current Chair of SLAM and Jinjer Kandola CEO that we could get Hope-FX off the ground. If you don’t try you just never know what you can achieve.