Speak up.
We will listen.
Speaking up is part of how we keep people safe, learn and improve. It can be raising a concern, asking a difficult question, admitting uncertainty, challenging respectfully or suggesting a better way.
Speaking up should feel normal, early and productive.
We want psychologically safe, civil and inclusive teams where people feel trusted and able to contribute. Speaking up matters, but so does what happens afterwards. People need to feel heard, know what happens next and see learning translated into action.
I WANT TO SPEAK UP
You do not have to work it out alone.
There are different ways to start a conversation. Choose the route that feels most appropriate for you.
Want to be a Freedom to Speak up Champion?
Our FTSU Champions are here to listen, encourage and signpost. They help colleagues understand how and where they can speak up, promote psychological safety within their teams and help make speaking up part of everyday working life. They do not investigate concerns, but they can help you find the right route and support.
Have you completed your training?
MFT offers three Freedom to Speak Up learning opportunities designed to help make speaking up part of everyday working life. Speak Up is mandatory for all colleagues and explores what speaking up means, why it matters, the barriers people can experience, confidentiality, how to raise a concern and where to find support. Listen Up, for managers, focuses on creating psychologically safe environments, recognising barriers to speaking up and understanding how behaviours and conflicts of interest can affect whether people feel able to use their voice. Follow Up, also for managers, builds on this by focusing on what happens after somebody speaks up, including receiving feedback with curiosity, building trust around confidentiality and understanding why feedback and follow-through matter. Listen Up and Follow Up are available as eLearning or virtual workshops, with CSS also promoting face-to-face opportunities for managers.
Speak Up. Listen well. Follow up. Together, the three levels reinforce that a healthy speaking-up culture is not simply about encouraging people to raise concerns. It is also about how we respond and whether people can see that their voice has made a difference.
