Florence Nightingale Foundation

Who we are

Florence Nightingale is undoubtedly the world’s most famous nurse and her influence and legacy continue to affect the world today. When Florence died in 1910 aged 90, the international nursing community wished to pay tribute to the life and work of this great nurse. At the International Council of Nurses (ICN) Congress held in Cologne in 1912, Mrs Ethel Bedford Fenwick in her speech at the final banquet proposed that ‘an appropriate memorial to Florence Nightingale be instituted’. She envisaged an educational foundation which would enable nurses ‘to prepare themselves most fitly to follow in her footsteps’. However, due to the First World War, it was not until 1929, at the ICN Grand Council in Montreal, that the memorial proposal was activated.

The Florence Nightingale Foundation was subsequently established in 1934. The FNF Academy was launched in 2020 and is the home for all our scholarly activity; scholarships, leadership programmes, policy, promotion of evidence-based practice and academy membership. Our activities are available both in the UK and internationally so enable nurses and midwives to develop and extend their knowledge and skills to meet the changing needs of patient, health, and care today and the future.

In a recent review of the leadership development required in health and social care to ensure an inclusive and collaborative future, Messenger & Pollard 2022 recommended targeted and systematic investment. It was asserted that clinical leadership is central to influencing the culture and behaviour of teams and that development opportunities should be available throughout all levels of the hierarchy. Inclusive and collaborative leadership should be embedded as the responsibility of all leaders to promote a culture of respect. This is the fundamental basis of our work.

All our scholars describe the experience with the Foundation as ‘life-changing’ both professionally and personally. This has given them the confidence to lead with integrity, challenge when they may not have done so previously and importantly recognise that by staying within their profession, they can make a real difference to society and improve care and health outcomes.

As Florence Nightingale demonstrated, influencing the way health care is delivered through strong nursing and midwifery leadership can make a great difference to people’s lives.   FNF Academy membership is offered to the most senior nurses and midwives in the health and care sector, providing them with support in their challenging leadership positions and facilitating access to programmes for the thousands of nurses and midwives working in their organisations.

The Foundation has a great brand and strong reputation. Building on the great success of transforming the Foundation from serving a few to the many, we wish to enter the next stage of our development.  With great ambition we will exponentially grow and will have increased UK and global presence and impact.

The Next 5 Years

We are dedicated to giving something back to nurses and midwives by supporting and developing their leadership potential to follow in Florence Nightingale’s footsteps.

Over the next 5 years we will continue to grow as a world class leadership charity, supporting nurse and midwife leaders to influence the quality of care, save lives and promote well-being across the world. Our scholars become role models for leaders in digital health, improving evidence-based practice and engaging in policy challenges as influences of change.

Our strategy for the next five years sets out ambitious national and global plans for growth in personal and leadership development. We are a charity that promotes equal, diverse, and inclusive opportunities for all, but we can do more.  We want to escalate our digital transformation plans to create greater access to more nurses and midwives globally and ensure FNF is digital throughout. At the same time, we will pursue a robust financial, social, cultural, and environmentally sustainable future.

Whilst developing our strong relationships with organisations in health and care and a range of other sectors across the four UK nations, we will also build on our expertise by expanding globally in a mutually beneficial way. In the initial years we will work in partnership with high income countries, building a resource base to support nurses and midwives in low and middle-income countries. We are committed to the United Nations (UN) Sustainable Development Goals and in all our work we seek to promote inclusivity and excellence.

Mission

Dedicated to supporting and developing nurses and midwives to improve care and save lives across the world, maintaining Florence Nightingale’s legacy.

Vision

Over the next 5 years, with our partners we will continue to grow as a world class charity, supporting nurses and midwives to develop the personal and leadership skills they need to improve care, save lives, and promote well-being across the world.

Our Values

Our values are guided by Florence’s legacy. Like her our scholars advance change and improvements in health and care using data and evidence, engage in and influence health polices and promote health prevention.  

Our Directors (Trustees)

They work tirelessly to support our work. Their backgrounds are varied and collectively they provide excellent input to the Chair and the Executive Team. 

Team FNF

Team FNF is multidisciplinary and currently comprises 28 talented individuals who provide expertise in nursing and midwifery, finance, fundraising, leadership programme delivery, governance, IT, learning technology, policy, communications, and marketing. The team is led by the CEO, Professor Greta Westwood CBE PhD. She is supported by a committed Executive Team: Deputy CEO, Finance Director, Director of Engagement and Director of Nursing & Midwifery Leadership Development.

Team FNF Benefits

Pay

We aim to offer a competitive but affordable charity sector salary. We review pay annually and we have a pay progression scheme for all team members.

Annual Leave

We have a generous annual leave allowance starting at 27 days per year. We all take 3 days of leave during the festive period.

Work life Balance & Flexible Working

We offer flexible working including home working.

Pension

Our pension scheme employer contributions of between 7.5% and 10% allows all staff the option to build a retirement fund.

Death in Service Policy

All staff are covered by a Death in Service Policy, four times the annual salary.

Support and Development

We make every effort to ensure you can fulfil your role to the best of your abilities, and to support your development. All new employees follow an induction programme.  We operate a Team FNF development programme to support you developing skills to fulfil the role to the best of your ability. You will meet monthly with your line manager to review your progress in the role and offer continuous development feedback. You will have a subscription to LinkedIn Learning.

Health & Wellbeing

We offer occupational and emotional wellbeing support. Our confidential Employee Assistance Programme is available to all to provide support for any concerns in work or personal life.

Working Environment

We are a small and friendly team. Our offices are at 10-18 Union Street, London, SE1 1SZ