16 January 2020

King's Health Partners Honorary Passports make cross-partnership working as simple as possible, freeing up time and resource for innovative research and care for patients.

Cross-partnership working is at the centre of all that we do at King’s Health Partners. The King’s Health Partners’ Honorary Passport was developed in 2010 to enable our staff to provide clinical services, education and training, and undertake research across our four partner organisations. 

In 2018, the King's Health Partners Honorary Passport was extended to include staff working at Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust. This revision was made to facilitate staff working across our organisations to develop plans to revolutionise cardiovascular and respiratory services.

This new year make sure you are making the most of this opportunity for cross-partnership working as part of King’s Health Partners.

What does an Honorary Passport offer?

The Honorary Passport is designed for those who work across multiple organisations and their sites. The passport reduces the risk of duplication of paperwork and resource, setting up honorary arrangements and ensuring that recruitment checks are in place for these staff. The passport also ensures observance of clinical governance on all the included sites.

Honorary Passports allow permitted staff members to access sites across King’s Health Partners and beyond. As previously highlighted, Royal Brompton & Harefield NHS Foundation Trust is now included as part of this initiative and there are plans underway to expand further.

The agreement recognises the de facto movement of staff across partner sites and legitimises cross-site working.

By cutting down administrative processes, more time is made available for research and clinical work, helping to accelerate translational research and improve delivery of care for patients.

How can I get one?

For those working across King’s Health Partners, an Honorary Passport request form must be completed by your primary employer (such as your line manager at the organisation you are employed by and that administers your pay) and issued by your HR Department.

In order to start working across sites, you need endorsement from a senior designated officer at the host organisation where you will be working in an honorary capacity. From this point you will be carrying out duties on the host employer’s behalf, and therefore will be bound by their rules, policies and procedures. You can learn more about this in our recently updated guidance.

If you are not currently substantively employed by one of the organisations within the Honorary Passport agreement, including postgraduates, visitors and retired consultants, separate arrangements are currently in place. Contact your organisation’s HR team to learn about your options.

If you are a manager and one of your team could benefit from an Honorary Passport, you can download the relevant form and forward it to your HR Department once completed.

Alternatively, if you are unsure about your eligibility or need for an Honorary Passport, or want to know more about the benefits, you can check out our frequently asked questions.