Postal Services - Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation ...
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Postal Services
Target Audience
Who Should Read This Policy
All BCPFT Staff and services
Version 1.0 April 2018Postal Services Policy Ref. Contents Page 1.0 Introduction 4 2.0 Purpose 4 3.0 Objectives 4 The objectives of this policy are: 4 4.0 Process 4 5.0 Procedures connected to this Policy 7 6.0 Links to Relevant Legislation 7 6.1 Links to Relevant National Standards 8 6.2 Links to other Key Policies 8 6.3 References 8 7.0 Roles and Responsibilities for this Policy 9 8.0 Training 9 9.0 Equality Impact Assessment 9 10.0 Data Protection and Freedom of Information 10 11.0 Monitoring this Policy is working in Practice 10 Version 1.0 April 2018 2
Postal Services Policy Explanation of terms used in this policy Confidentiality and Security of Mail – Ensuring any letters/documents are addressed appropriately and intended for the use by the individual they are addressed to; obtaining signatures where necessary Transport – BCPFT’s transport department who deliver and collect post securely from various sites Couriers – external transport company used by BCPFT to deliver documents securely, obtaining signatures Specialist Delivery – an important item of post that is tracked to ensure it reaches its destination safely and securely Third Party – an external organisation employed by BCPFT to process mail safely and securely on its behalf Freepost - a postal service whereby the cost of postage is paid in advance by BCPFT Franking Machine Credit – A machine that prints the postage charge on to envelopes. It is pre- loaded with money to cover the cost of postage Third Party Printing – BCPFT uses Synertec (organisation) who provide a service of alternative methods of processing and sending mail on behalf of the Trust Version 1.0 April 2018 3
Postal Services Policy
1.0 Introduction
This policy has been written in relation to internal and external post produced by
BCPFT services, it is to act as a guide for all service sectors within BCPFT.
2.0 Purpose
The purpose of this document is to act as a guide for all BCPFT members of staff so
that a consistent and efficient approach is applied to the sending and receiving of
internal and external post.
3.0 Objectives
The objectives of this policy are:
To provide a clear and concise explanation with regards to who is responsible
for the management and co-ordination of all BCPFT post at each site.
Explain all services related to post both internal and external at each site.
4.0 Process
4.1 Confidentiality and Security of Mail
Any mail sent to the Post Room should be clearly addressed and easy to read.
If your mail is confidential, please ensure it is clearly marked, Private and
Confidential, or ‘Addressee only’ as appropriate.
Any mail received by the Post Room which is either damaged or where the
address is not clear, will be opened by the Post Room Staff and returned to
sender in a sealed envelope.
Any mail returned to the Trust as ‘undelivered’ will be opened by the Post
Room Staff and returned to sender. The original envelope with any royal mail
markings or comments will also be returned to the sender so that they can
review any comments made.
Where post has been returned to the Trust in a damaged or opened envelope,
or if the original letter has been placed in another envelope and so appears to
have been read, the Post Room staff will log this as an incident on Datix. Any
incidents should be assigned to the sender of the mail in the first instance. A
copy of the incident report will be included with the returned post and sent
back to the sender.
BCPFT post will be collected and delivered via BCPFT Transport, Royal Mail and
various couriers approved by the Trust.
The majority of mail will follow the process detailed below:
1. BCPFT Transport staff will deliver mail, both internal and external, to Trust
sites occupied by BCPFT staff. While they are delivering the mail they will
also collect any outgoing internal or external mail from the site. Please note
that this mail must be sorted into internal and external post by the staff at each
site ready for collection, all sorting bags and equipment will be provided.
2. All post will be sent as 2nd class as standard practice. 1st class mail should
only be requested in exceptional circumstances and should be clearly marked
on the envelope.
3. Any mail where specialist delivery is required e.g. Recorded Delivery, Special
Delivery – the person sending the letter must complete the sender details on
Version 1.0 April 2018 4Postal Services Policy
the reverse of the envelope and mark the front of the envelope with the words
‘recorded delivery’ or ‘special delivery’. Please keep this type of post separate
so it can be processed quickly. Please refer to the Royal Mail Website for
description of services and delivery timescales. www.royalmail.com
4. Transport will collect the post and this will be taken to the central Post Room
located at Penn Hospital.
5. The Post Room will sort the internal post into the appropriate sack ready for
Transport to collect and deliver.
6. The external post will be sorted and franked by the Post Room Staff /
Reception / Transport at Penn.
7. Royal Mail will collect all external post on a daily basis from Penn reception.
8. Transport will collect all sorted internal post from the Post Room on a daily
basis and deliver to the appropriate sites.
9. All post must be segregated into 1st, 2nd class and internal from each site.
10. All external post should be sent in white envelopes, this is a direction from
Royal Mail
Third Party Printing & Postal Services
Synertec provides a service providing an alternative method of processing and
sending mail on a business class, further details are available from Procurement.
Postage Stamps
Postage stamps can still be used by teams however they must be purchased from
the Trust Procurement system E-series via the Trust Contract Supplier. It is the
responsibility of each team to ensure stamped mail is posted via a Royal Mail post
box. Please note that using postage stamps is far more expensive than using the
franking services from the Post Room.
Parcels and Large Mail
Transport will collect parcels and large mail for processing via the Post Room. Any
exceptional parcels or large mail (this would include very heavy items or oddly
shaped items) please contact the Estates and Facilities Helpdesk on 0121 612 8010
to advise.
Recorded, Signed for and Special Deliveries
As well as 1st and 2nd class posting BCPFT staff can request that mail is sent via
Royal Mail Special Delivery or Royal Mail signed for 1st and 2nd class. This works
with the main mail service and staff must ensure that the correct service is requested
on the envelope. For full details please see SOP
Exceptions: Personal mail/parcels deliveries must not be delivered to Site
Receptions.
You can use the Royal Mail Signed for 1st Class or 2nd Class post for important post
when you need confirmation that your letter has arrived at its destination.
Version 1.0 April 2018 5Postal Services Policy
This service costs from £1.73 for letters up to 100g then increase by weight for 1st
class and £1.64 for the same weight for 2nd class.
The Service offers you the following benefits
Ability to confirm online when your item has been delivered
Aim to deliver next working day for 1st class
Aim to deliver in two to three working days for 2nd class
Proof of delivery including a signature from the receiver
Compensation cover up to £50. Excludes jewellery and money (coins, cash,
postal orders, bonds and coupons or vouchers exchanges for money, goods
or services, which includes tickets).
You can also see a copy of the recipient’s signature online.
You can log into the Royal Mail Track and Trace website which will be updated as
soon as your letter has been delivered. If you require the tracking number please
contact Penn Reception.
Please note that this is not a fully tracked service – Royal Mail will only provide you
with confirmation of delivery and a sample of the signature. If sending abroad it will
not be tracked at the point of leaving the U.K.
Business Replies (Freepost envelopes)
A business reply service can be set up by any team who requires this service and it
is the responsibility of the team to set up an account registered to a specific address.
Please note this will incur an annual cost for the licence as this has to be registered
with Royal Mail. Charges for using this service are charged via invoice in arrears.
The Freepost Standard Service allows you to pre-print your envelopes with the
business address of your choice and your Freepost Licence Number. You supply the
envelopes to your clients / patients. You will be invoiced on the number of responses
which are returned to your address.
If you take out a new Freepost Standard licence you will need to apply a licence
barcode to your envelopes from the first time you use that licence. There is an annual
fee to purchase the licence which is registered to the nominated address.
To take advantage of Business Reply and Freepost, you need to have an account
with Royal Mail. Black Country Partnership NHS Trust already has an account with
Royal Mail. You will therefore need to call the Response Services Team on 08457
950 950.
The Response Services Team will tell you how to add Freepost to the main account
for your specific service / team. You will need to download the online application
form and read the Terms and Conditions before you make your application.
First download, print and complete the application form . Before applying, make
sure you have read and understand our terms and conditions .
Once completed, post your application to the Response Services team at:
Royal Mail Response Services Team, PO Box 740
Barnsley, S73 0ZJ
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Tel: 0141 5577014
Email: response.services.admin@royalmail.com
If you are unsure and have further questions about this service, you can contact the
Royal Mail Account Manager who is allocated to the organisation.
If you still have queries, please log a call on the Estates and Facilities Helpdesk 0121
612 8010 and your query will be passed to Penn Reception.
Franking Machine Credit
This is paid by direct debit on a monthly basis – in respect of the Post Room at Penn.
Issues, Concerns and Complaints
For any issues, concerns or complaints regarding post please contact the Estates
and Facilities Helpdesk on 0121 612 8010 who will then be able to assist or re-direct
your call to the appropriate Manager / Co-Ordinator for action.
Any incidents must be logged as per Incident Policy on Datix.
5.0 Procedures connected to this Policy
Transport and Collection Delivery Schedule
Recorded, Signed for and Special Deliveries
Business Reply Service
Safe Haven SOP
Incident Reporting
6.0 Links to Relevant Legislation
Data Protection Act 1998
The Data Protection Act 1998 became law in March 2000. It sets standards that must
be satisfied when obtaining, recording, holding, using or disposing of personal data.
The law applies to data held on computers or any sort of storage system, including
paper records.
There are 8 enforceable principles of good practice. Data should be:
Fairly and lawfully processed
Processed for limited purposes
Adequate, relevant and not excessive
Accurate
Not kept longer than necessary
Processed in accordance with the data subject's rights
Secure
Not transferred to countries outside the European Economic Area (EEA),
without adequate protection
Access to Health Records Act 1990
Access to Health Records Act 1990 (AHRA) provides certain individuals with a right
of access to the health records of a deceased individual. These individuals are
defined under Section 3(1) (f) of that Act as, ‘the patient’s personal representative
Version 1.0 April 2018 7Postal Services Policy and any person who may have a claim arising out of the patient’s death’. A personal representative is the executor or administrator of the deceased person’s estate. There are also a range of public bodies that have lawful authority to require the disclosure of health information. These include the Courts, legally constituted Public Inquiries and various Regulators and Commissions e.g. the Audit Commission and the Care Quality Commission. In these cases the common law obligation to confidentiality is overridden. Children & Families Act 2014 Children and Families Act 2014 gives greater protection to vulnerable children, better support for children whose parents are separating, a new system to help children with special educational needs and disabilities, and help for parents to balance work and family life. Children Act 2004 Children Act 2004 provides the legal basis for dealing with issues relating to children. These guidelines have been put in place so that all individuals who are involved in looking after children are aware of how they should be looked after in the eyes of the law. This act was brought into being in order for the government in conjunction with social and health service bodies to help work towards these common goals: • To allow children to be healthy • Allow children to remain safe in their environments • Help children to enjoy life • Assist children in their quest to succeed • Help make a positive contribution to the lives of children • Help achieve economic stability for our children’s futures 6.1 Links to Relevant National Standards Data Security and Protection Toolkit Information Commissioners Office; information security CQC Regulation 16: Receiving and Acting on Complaints NPSA Being Open: Saying sorry when things go wrong (2009) 6.2 Links to other Key Policies Information Governance Policy Data Protection and Security Policy Incident Reporting 6.3 References www.royalmail.com Version 1.0 April 2018 8
Postal Services Policy
7.0 Roles and Responsibilities for this Policy
Title Role Key Responsibilities
All staff Adherence - Adherence to the relevant sections in the policy
Managers Operational - Ensure staff comply with the policy
Information Specialist Advice/ - Any changes in legislation
Governance Inspections - Approval for the policy
Transport Operational - Collect and deliver on time both internal and external post
Penn Reception Operational - Responsible for sorting and posting
8.0 Training
What aspect(s) Is this training covered in the
Which staff groups Trust’s Mandatory and Risk How often will Who will ensure and
of this policy will If no, how will the Who will deliver the
require this Management Training Needs staff require monitor that staff have
require staff training be delivered? training?
training? Analysis document? training this training?
training?
Information Any staff involved Yes – mandatory training
Governance in sending /
(Caldicott) receiving post
9.0 Equality Impact Assessment
Black Country Partnership NHS Foundation Trust is committed to ensuring that the way we provide services and the way we recruit and treat staff
reflects individual needs, promotes equality and does not discriminate unfairly against any particular individual or group. The Equality Impact
Assessment for this policy has been completed and is readily available on the Intranet. If you require this in a different format e.g. larger print,
Braille, different languages or audio tape, please contact the Equality & Diversity Team on Ext. 8067 or email bcpft.equalityimpactassessment@nhs.net
Version 1.0 April 2018 9Postal Services Policy
10.0 Data Protection and Freedom of Information
Data Protection Act provides controls for the way information is handled and to gives legal rights to individuals in relation to the use of their data. It
sets out strict rules for people who use or store data about individuals and gives rights to those people whose data has been collected. The law
applies to all personal data held including electronic and manual records. The Information Commissioner’s Office has powers to enforce the Data
Protection Act and can do this through the use of compulsory audits, warrants, notices and monetary penalties which can be up to €20million or 4%
of the Trusts annual turnover for serious breaches of the Data Protection Act. In addition to this the Information Commissioner can limit or stop data
processing activities where there has been a serious breach of the Act and there remains a risk to the data.
The Freedom of Information Act provides public access to information held by public authorities. The main principle behind freedom of information
legislation is that people have a right to know about the activities of public authorities, unless there is a good reason for them not to. The Freedom of
Information Act applies to corporate data and personal data generally cannot be released under this Act.
All staffs have a responsibility to ensure that they do not disclose information about the Trust’s activities; this includes information about service
users in its care, staff members and corporate documentation to unauthorised individuals. This responsibility applies whether you are currently
employed or after your employment ends and in certain aspects of your personal life e.g. use of social networking sites etc. The Trust seeks to
ensure a high level of transparency in all its business activities but reserves the right not to disclose information where relevant legislation applies.
The Information Governance Team provides a central point for release of information under Data Protection and Freedom of Information following
formal requests for information; any queries about the disclosure of information can be forwarded to the Information Governance Team.
11.0 Monitoring this Policy is working in Practice
What key elements will be Where How will they be Who will Group/Committee Group/Committee Evidence
How
monitored? described in monitored? undertake this that will receive and to ensure actions this has
Frequently?
(measurable policy objectives) policy? (method + sample size) monitoring? review results are completed happened
Post-delivery internal 1.0, 2.0, 4.0 Sent items Delegated TBA Postal Action Group Postal Action
Individual Postal Group
Action Group Meeting
Member Notes
Performance Information 7.0 Finance report discussed Postal Action Group Six-monthly Business & Postal Action
at Post Meeting Group Members Performance Group
Meeting
Notes
Version 1.0 April 2018 10Postal Services Policy
Audit 7.0 Review of returned items Postal Action Group TBA Postal Action Group Postal Action
Members Group
Meeting
Notes
Version 1.0 April 2018 11Postal Services Policy
Policy Details
Title of Policy Postal Services Policy
Unique Identifier for this policy BCPFT-EST-POL-03
State if policy is New or Revised New
Previous Policy Title where applicable N/A
Policy Category
Corporate
Clinical, HR, H&S, Infection Control etc.
Executive Director
Financial Director
whose portfolio this policy comes under
Policy Lead/Author
Head of Facilities
Job titles only
Committee/Group responsible for the
approval of this policy
Estates and facilities meeting/corporate DMB
Month/year consultation process
completed *
April 2018
Month/year policy approved August 2018
Month/year policy ratified and issued September 2018
Next review date April 2021
Implementation Plan completed * Yes
Equality Impact Assessment completed * Yes
Previous version(s) archived * n/a
Disclosure status ‘B’ can be disclosed to patients and the public
Policy, Confidentiality, Security of Mail Letters,
Documents, signed Delivery, Transport,
Key Words for this policy Couriers, Specialist Delivery, Third Party,
Freepost, Postal Service, Postage, Franking
Machine Credit, Third Party Printing
* For more information on the consultation process, implementation plan, equality impact assessment,
or archiving arrangements, please contact Corporate Governance
Review and Amendment History
Version Date Details of Change
1.0 April 2018 New Policy for BCPFT
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