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The Clinical Champions Programme

Group of HCPs

We develop systems leaders who start small from wherever they are, include marginalised voices, and lead together across boundaries.

This programme is a free opportunity for healthcare professionals from across the UK to develop transferrable leadership skills and build a UK-wide support network and local partnerships for collective action. Over 1.5 years, they’ll build their capabilities and connections to become catalysts for the positive transformation of diabetes care.


Our programme is a collaborative effort.

The content is co-designed and delivered with healthcare professionals, community leaders and people with lived experience. This ensures relevance, inclusivity and real-world application.

It’s a training programme and a call to action.

The practical application of learnings from this year’s programme will focus on getting essential diabetes care right for all.


Applications for 2024-25 are now open

Applications will be closing on Sunday, 7 April 2024.

Who is the programme for?

Anyone who works in a health and care context and is committed to getting essential diabetes care right for all:

  • practice nurses
  • general practitioners
  • diabetes specialist nurses
  • diabetologists
  • dietitians
  • podiatrists
  • psychologists
  • pharmacists
  • other registered healthcare professionals.

We aim to develop leaders at every level of the health and care system who truly reflect the talents, diversity of staff, and the communities they serve.

We recognise potential. You do not need experience working in a formal leadership role. 

How this programme can help you

The unprecedented scale of diabetes, widening inequalities and an overstretched workforce call for leadership like never before.

  • only 18% – 37% of people with diabetes get all nine essential care processes. We know that social deprivation is the main barrier to accessing care.
  • only 33% – 40% of people of Black and South Asian ethnicity are offered wearable glucose monitors compared to 52% of White people. 
  • only 56% of staff are happy with the standard of care. Many feel demoralised and the level of burnout is high.

Such complex challenges can’t be tackled by a few heroic individuals. Leadership must be a collective effort to which people from all levels, backgrounds and different places contribute.

We believe together we can transform diabetes care so that everyone gets the care they deserve, ethnicity and deprivation no longer determine health outcomes, and staff feel valued and can create the conditions for better and fairer diabetes care.

Join us to:

1. Develop collaborative leadership capabilities which apply to a diverse range of job roles and settings, whilst becoming a catalyst for change in diabetes care at the community or local level. You’ll build skills that help you to develop your personal leadership style.

2. Learn how to manage upwards in the hierarchical environment of the NHS and expand into systems leadership to enable collective action across professional, hierarchical, organisational, and sector boundaries.

3. Build a national support network and local partnerships to learn and act together throughout and beyond the programme.

4. Be a driving force in advocating for diabetes essential care in underserved communities. Your leadership can bridge gaps and ensure healthcare is accessible to all.

What to expect

A small but diverse cohort

  • Learn with openness, curiosity and confidentiality in a small but diverse cohort of 20 healthcare professionals from across the UK and meet a range of experts in systems change.
  • A blend of in-person retreats, online sessions and local events
  • Immerse yourself in a blend of carefully curated in-person retreats, online sessions and local events. These gatherings provide a safe space to engage in reflection away from the daily routine, fostering not only learning but also connections that last.

 Real-world application of learnings

  • Apply your learning locally by collaborating with healthcare professionals, regional and national Diabetes UK teams, alumni participants, individuals with lived experience, and community groups. This collaborative approach is pivotal in addressing inequalities and optimising diabetes care.

Topics covered

  • understand yourself and your relationships in the system
  • build trust and create a collaborative environment
  • co-create a positive future vision
  • have better conversations
  • involve marginalised voices
  • use a system lens to tackle inequalities
  • make sense of complex situations
  • negotiate and Influence
  • initiate change
  • deal with uncertainty
  • sustain and scale change,

Costs

Participation in the Clinical Champions programme is free of charge, and travel expenses associated with the programme will be reimbursed. Accommodation, meals and refreshments will be provided during the in-person retreats.

Time commitment

Over 1.5 years. During this time you’ll:

  • attend three in-person retreats in London (each will last 1.5 to 2.5 days)
  • participate in an online welcome session and four online group sessions (each will last approximately 4 hours)
  • do pre-work for each in-person retreat and online session including reading an article or completing a short task and reflecting on it (each will take approximately 2 hours)
  • engage in two in-person local events (each will last 0.5 – 1 day)
  • apply and reflect on your learning outside of the programme to improve diabetes care in your professional context

A more detailed timeline is in the Application pack (PDF, 1.36 MB).

Dates

Please note we are recruiting for two cohorts. Successful candidates will only have to attend the sessions of one of the two cohorts. We’ll let you know which cohort you are in when informing you about the outcome of your application.

Cohort 1: Key dates in 2024

  • 07.04.2024 – Close of recruitment
  • 23.05.2024 – Online Welcome Session
  • 05.06.2024 – 07.06.2024 – Residential module 1*
  • 05.09.2024 – Online module 1
  • Sept/Oct 2024 (date TBC) – In-person event in your region or nation
  • 09.12.2024 – Online module 2

Cohort 2: Key dates in 2024

  • 07.04.2024 – Close of recruitment
  • 23.05.2024 – Online Welcome Session
  • 17.06.2024 – 19.06.2024 – Residential module 1*
  • 06.09.2024 – Online module 1
  • Sept/Oct 2024 (date TBC) – In-person event in your region or nation
  • 10.12.2024 – Online module 2

*Venue in London with time spent at our London office (E1 1FH)

What our alumni say about the programme:

“I appreciated connecting with people with the same ethos – a shared goal of improving the lives of people living with diabetes. I feel part of a tribe.”

Read our latest Evaluation Report (PDF, 2.54 MB) if you would like to know more.

Selection criteria

  1. You believe that change is possible and that you can change things.
  2. You are enthusiastic about getting diabetes essential care right and you are working in a place where you can make improvements to it.
  3. You are committed to and have some experience in actively tackling inequalities and promoting diversity and inclusion.
  4. You are committed to and have some experience working in a collaborative and relationship-focused way.
  5. You are committed to and have some experience in engaging and collaborating with people with lived experience.
  6. You are open-minded and willing to learn.

How to apply

Applications are now open until Sunday, 7 April 2024.

  1. Read our Application Pack (PDF, 1.36 MB)
  2. Download the Letter of Support template (please read page 19 of the Application Pack on how to complete this)
  3. Complete the online application form.*

If you are shortlisted, you will be invited to an online interview. Applications will be assessed, and interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis. We may close recruitment early if we receive enough applications and therefore advise you to apply as soon as possible. The final selection of candidates will take place by Tuesday, 23 April 2024 and applicants will be contacted via email.  

Apply to be a Clinical Champion

*If you are experiencing difficulty accessing the form through a work computer, please try on another device or contact us if that is not possible.

Contact us with any questions at ClinicalChampions@diabetes.org.uk.

This project aligns with our work around our Tackling Inequality CommissionWe will ensure that our opportunities are accessible to people from all ethnicities and backgrounds, particularly encouraging applications and providing support for those from racially minoritised ethnic groups.

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