The milestone was celebrated with an afternoon of wellbeing activities at Sheffield Hallam’s Collegiate Campus, including:
- Art workshops
- Therapy dog sessions
- Yoga classes
- Mindful gardening
- Poetry readings
- Mindful walks through Sheffield Botanical Gardens
- ‘Find your voice’ singing workshop
- Therapeutic crafting
- Badminton
- Microbiology exhibit
- Spike ball
- Lego building
The event also featured virtual reality demonstrations, exhibition stands, Sheffield Hallam facility tours, prehabilitation demonstrations and talks from University and SHSC NHS leaders.
Professor Toni Schwarz, Dean of Sheffield Hallam’s College of Health, Wellbeing and Life Sciences, closed the event with her Inaugural Professorial Lecture, A Celebration of the Nurse, exploring the unique role that nursing plays in society.
SHSC is marking NHS75 with a month-long programme of events and giveaways, including a special tree planting and time capsule burial which indicates its commitment to planting 75 trees during the NHS’ 75th year. The Trust has also commissioned the Poet Laureate for Sheffield, Danae Wellington, to create a bespoke poem that honours the NHS for all it does and has teamed up with businesses across Sheffield to giveaway prizes to its workforce.
The celebrations continue into the weekend with NHS staff handing out special NHS 75 t-shirts at Endcliffe Park parkrun to the first 25 runners and walkers to join the wear blue initiative. The NHS has teamed up with parkrun UK to encourage the public to wear blue and join thousands across the country taking part in parkruns on Saturday 8 July and junior parkrun events on Sunday 9 July.
It comes as the parkrun Research Board from the University’s Advanced Wellbeing Research Centre held an NHS@75: parkrun on prescription public seminar about parkrun's health benefits and its potential for social prescribing. The team has compiled a virtual article collection, bringing together health-related research articles from across the UK.
Sheffield Hallam’s Professor Toni Schwarz said: “We are delighted to celebrate the 75th birthday of the NHS today with the Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Trust. Celebrating this significant milestone with one of our key partners is so important to us at the University and is indicative of the way we collaborate with our practice partners across the region. These partnerships are vital to the work we do in educating students across our different health, care and health scientist professions.
“Over 95% of our graduating students go on to work in the region, many of which are within an NHS trust, so is great to have this opportunity to team up with our NHS colleagues to deliver this joint commemorative event celebrating our staff, their dedication and the important work they do.”
Sharon Mays, Chair of Sheffield Health and Social Care NHS Foundation Trust, said: “The 5th of July 2023 marks 75 years of the National Health Service. The NHS treats over a million people a day in England and touches all of our lives. When it was founded in 1948, the NHS was the first universal health system to be available to all, free at the point of delivery. It is truly unique and treasured by so many.
“In Sheffield, we are celebrating in many ways. Today we’ve joined forces with Sheffield Hallam University who play a vital role in nurturing the next generation of nurses, allied health professionals and many more. Together we will be celebrating 75 years of the NHS by concentrating on wellbeing. The wellbeing of NHS staff is key to ensuring we have a happy healthy and fulfilled workforce, which in turn leads to better outcomes and experiences for patients.
“I want to say a huge thank you to our NHS staff. You are the heart of the NHS. Thank you for your hard work, commitment, dedication, and everything you do every day for those we support. Happy 75th birthday.”
The NHS treats over a million people a day in England. Founded in 1948, it was the first universal health system to be available to all, free at the point of delivery. Today, nine in ten people agree that healthcare should be free of charge, and more than four in five agree that care should be available to everyone and that the NHS makes them most proud to be British.
The NHS has delivered huge medical advances, including the world’s first liver, heart and lung transplant in 1987, pioneering new treatments, such as bionic eyes and, more recently, the world’s first rapid whole genome sequencing service for seriously ill babies and children.
As one of the largest providers of health and social care education in the UK, Sheffield Hallam has committed to boosting the NHS workforce, integrating research and innovation with local health services and collaborating with local communities to tackle health inequalities.
