eESS is a single, national NHS Scotland approach to HR systems providing a high quality, standardised HR function.
All NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde staff will have an employee record on the system which interfaces with Payroll and the Scottish Standard Time System (SSTS) to provide real time workforce information and reports. Key features of the system will include:
Employee Self Service – Employees can view their employment record, make changes to personal data (eg. address), and request training.
Manager Self Service – Managers can approve requests and process changes (such as change of hours) through to payroll and will also be able to use manager self-service for improved workforce record keeping and reporting.
Core HR – see below
Oracle Learning Management System (OLM) – see below
Core
eESS Core is the control centre for HR Staff and Line Managers to capture workforce information in relation to employee personal records.
The Core Employee Record captures:
Changes to Contract
Eligibility to Work
Essential workers
Exit Interviews
Mentorship for AHP and NMC
Occupational Health Passport
Other non-NHS employment
Previous NHS employment
Qualifications and registrations
Supplementary roles
Terms and Conditions
HR users will have access to run and generate standard and non-standard reports to support workforce monitoring and planning.
By allowing staff eESS access, employees can view and update information, and ensure that HR and the Board holds accurate and the most up-to-date information.
Oracle Learning Management (OLM)
The Oracle Learning Management (OLM) component of eESS will enable improved access to and monitoring of all the activities associated with the learning and development of staff. This will include the administration of courses and the recording of learning undertaken by every employee, including e-Learning.
Courses can be linked to defined competencies, including national competence frameworks, so that current employee competencies and progress towards those competencies can be updated and monitored.
Benefits
Enables NHSGGC to manage all aspects of the delivery and maintenance of a learning service including the ability to access national courses which are centrally maintained.
OLM supports a blended approach to learning with NHSGGC able to offer a single point of access for all classroom courses and e-Learning across the Board through a unified catalogue.
Maintains information on:
Courses (any educational or development activity designed to enhance an employee’s competencies, qualifications or experience)
Classes (a single occurrence of a course on a particular date)
Resources (such as trainers, equipment or venues)
Employees can directly enrol to courses, subject to manager approval.
The LearnPro interface will automatically update learning records when an e-Learning course is completed.
Employee competencies can be associated with courses. Once a member of staff has completed the course, his or her employee record can be updated with the new competency automatically.
Monitoring of compliance with mandatory training. For example, a skill may require a refresher course every 12 months; OLM will enable you to report on those employees who are due for refresher learning.
A wide range of reports enables learning and development to be monitored at a local and national level.
Automatic system generated e-mail delivered to staff upon:
Full access to all Standard Operating Procedures and e-Learning videos is available on the eESS National Team website.
Oracle Business Intelligence Enterprise Edition (OBIEE)
OBIEE is the integrated Reporting Tool that allows organisations to build and develop a range of reports and dashboards that meets statutory and local reporting requirements. It will support workforce planning and align to requirements for Staff Governance reporting and analysis.
How to contact the eESS Team. Get in touch with the eESS Team via the HR Connect Self-Service Portal which launched on 6th June 2022. (Add the link to your Favourites for easy access). Alternatively you can access the HRConnect portal via NHSGGC Favourites\Admin\HR Self Service Portal.
For urgent enquiries, or to speak to a member of the team, you can call us on 0141 278 2700 option 5. Press 1 for the eESS Support Team and Press 2 for the eESS Technical Team. The phone lines are open between 9.00am and 3.00pm, Monday to Friday.
The eESS Support Team are available to assist with Login Assistance/Password resets, Support with payroll transactions (Staff Transfers/Terminations etc), Input of Staff Engagement Forms (SEFs), Contract Amendments and Set up of Additional Responsibilities
The eESS Technical Team are available with Pending Report (failed payroll transactions), Hierarchy updates, Proxy User set up and end-dating, Set up of New Positions, Set up of New Cost Centres and organisational structures
The first time you call the eESS Team, please provide some key details in relation to your role and the area where you work.
Within NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC), we acknowledge the unique commitment demonstrated by the Armed Forces Community, which balances civilian roles within the organisation with military responsibilities or family ties. We value the unique skills and experience being part of this community brings to our organisation.
The Armed Forces Community encompasses both individuals who have served in the Armed Forces and individuals affiliated with the Armed Forces, including military family members and dependants. Therefore the Armed Forces Community includes Armed Forces regulars, Service leavers, Veterans, Armed Forces reservists, Cadets & Cadet Forces Adult Volunteers (CFAV) and Military spouses & dependants.
Therefore if you are a member of the Community in any way, we would ask you to register with the Board Contact: Diana Hudson, Staff Experience Adviser, Diana.Hudson@nhs.scot. This means, we can ensure you are kept up to date with the support that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde can offer.
When registering, we ask that you complete a short form and submit this to the Board Contact. By completing these details, we’re able to securely hold your contact details and will be used for the purposes of Armed Forces communication within the Board. Please get in touch with the Board Contact for a registration form.
The Armed Forces Covenant
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) affirmed its commitment to supporting serving personnel, Reservists, veterans, and military families by signing the Armed Forces Covenant. By signing the Covenant, we pledge our commitment to supporting the Armed Forces Community, recognising the value they contribute and acknowledging that serving personnel and military families should be treated with fairness and respect.
To help NHSGGC staff understand the Covenant and its implementation, a LearnPro module has been created. This module is available under the Specialist Subjects dropdown in the LearnPro system or by searching, “Understanding the Armed Forces Covenant”. The LearnPro system can be found using this link: learnPro NHS – Login
The regular training that the Reserve Forces undertake brings essential skills into the workplace such as leadership, communication, team working and organisational ability, which ultimately lead to improved performance in the workplace.
The Reserve Forces Training Policy is an established National NHS Scotland policy within our suite of workforce policies and we hope that we can be confident that all NHS Scotland employers are treating their staff who are members of the Reserve Forces equally.
We are actively engaged with the Armed Forces Talent Programme (AFTP) through a national working group, supporting the recruitment of Armed Forces leavers, and those from the wider community, into our workforce.
This fosters positive relationships, collaboration, and continued progress in supporting the Armed Forces Community.
To find out more about the Armed Forces Talent Programme, please visit their website.
The Defence Employer Recognition Scheme
The Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) encourages employers to support members of our workforce who are part of the Armed Forces Community.
NHSGGC’s dedication to ensuring that all members of its workforce feel valued is evident, with a particular emphasis on supporting those who are part of the Armed Forces Community. The organisation’s communications and activities are carefully designed to celebrate and encourage this community, and we are delighted to be recognised for this work through achieving the Gold level in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme.
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Staff Governance is a term which describes the framework for managing employees inside NHS Scotland. The commitments surrounding the framework, are in place to ensure all staff have a positive experience at work, where they feel motivated and engaged with their role, team and the Board.
Staff Governance is defined as: “a system of corporate accountability for the fair and effective management of all staff”.
It can be measured through assurance that the Standard commitments are being met, and this is assessed locally via the Staff Governance Committee of each Board.
Staff Governance Standard
The Staff Governance Standard sets out what each NHSScotland employer must achieve in order to continuously improve in relation to the fair and effective management of staff. Click on the links for more information.
There are 5 Staff Governance Standard commitments set out what staff can expect from their NHS Scotland Board, and they are that staff should be:
Well informed
Appropriately trained and developed
Involved in decisions
Treated fairly and consistently, with dignity and respect, in an environment where diversity is valued
Provided with a continuously improving and safe working environment, promoting the health and wellbeing of staff, patients and the wider community.
However, the Standard also sets out corresponding responsibilities for staff (at any level within the organisation). Staff should:
Keep themselves up to date with developments relevant to their job within the organisation
Commit to continuous personal and professional development
Adhere to the standards set by their regulatory bodies
Actively participate in discussions on issues that affect them either directly or via their trade union/professional organisation
Treat all staff, patients and service users with dignity and respect while valuing diversity
Ensure that their actions maintain and promote the health, safety and wellbeing of all staff, patients, service users and carers.
These dual commitments are in place to ensure all staff have a positive experience at work, where they feel motivated and engaged with their role, team and the Board.
NHSGGC Staff Governance Committee assesses how well the Board is complying with these Standards.
The Vision and Framework for Fair Work in Scotland, state that, by 2025, people in Scotland will have a world-leading working life where fair work drives success, wellbeing and prosperity for individuals, businesses, organisations and for society.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) is committed to the Fair Work principles in order to deliver Scottish Government ambitions of a Fair Work Nation.
As a large public sector organisation, we work in partnership to align the Fair Work principles through commitment to the Staff Governance Standard, as well as a range of other activities and plans across the organisation including, the Procurement Strategy, Workforce Equality plans, Learning and Education activity, the Staff Health Strategy, Safety and Wellbeing plans, flexible and family friendly HR policies, and our Workforce Plan. Additionally, NHSGGC are proud to be a Living Wage Accredited employer.
Staff Governance Committee
The Staff Governance Committee (SGC) is a standing committee of each NHS Board which, together with the Clinical Governance Committee and Audit Committee, forms the full governance framework for NHS Boards.
The purpose of the Staff Governance Committee is to provide assurance to the Board that NHSGGC meets its obligations in relation to Staff Governance under the National Health Service Reform (Scotland) Act 2004 and the Staff Governance Standard. The Staff Governance Committee is a Standing Committee of the Board.
The Committee ensures that structures and policies are in place to provide assurance that all staff are:
Well informed
Appropriately trained and developed
Involved in decisions
Treated fairly and consistently, with dignity and respect, in an environment where diversity is valued
Provided with a continuously improving and safe working environment, promoting the health and wellbeing of staff, patients and the wider community.
Each Health and Social Care Partnership, Acute Services and Corporate Directorate have their own Staff Governance arrangements and structure.
The Staff Governance Committee meets four times per year to review and as part of each Committee meeting, speakers provide assurance that structures, actions and processes are in place to meet the Standard.
The NHSGGC Staff Governance Committee is co-chaired by Ketki Miles (Non-Executive Director) and Ann Cameron-Burns (Employee Director).
The Staff Experience Team runs a programme of Collaborative Conversations Staff Engagement Sessions to hear more from staff about their staff experience.
In 2023, and early 2024, we ran a programme of conversations with staff to test how we were using feedback from iMatter and Investors in People. At those Staff Engagement Sessions we asked staff for their input on what difference they’ve seen over the last year and what they think would make the biggest difference to their experience at work and the experience of colleagues.
The staff feedback was provided to the Investors in People (IiP) Cluster groups to inform their improvement plans and help create a better workplace in all our areas.
The team then worked with local services and teams to identify key themes from the 2024 iMatter survey and to help plan the programme of Collaborative Conversations. Feedback from these sessions informed both Cluster IiP actions, local Directorate and Health and Social Care Partnership (HSCP) activity, and the NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) Board Action Plan.
For our New Starts, we are always looking for ways to improve the onboarding experience – for this to happen, feedback from colleagues who have newly joined NHSGGC is invaluable. Therefore we regularly run Collaborative Conversations which provide an opportunity for us to hear what went well during recruitment, onboarding and first few months in post. We are always keen to understand what went well and use feedback to identify any areas we can improve. We are currently scheduling Collaborative Conversations for staff who started with the organisation between August 2025 and November 2025.
In addition, we run a series of Conversations to engage with staff about the Workforce Strategy, both to provide an overview of progress from the most recent Strategy, and to help inform the Strategy from 2025. This helped the team understand what staff feel is important to see included in the Strategy and helped deliver a strategy that moves culture and leadership to where we want it to be.
Staff experience takes account of a staff members full employment journey, from being a prospective candidate right up the point they leave an organisation.
As an employer, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) wants to ensure all staff have a positive experience at work, through:
Ensuring visibility of, and access to, the right people and the right information at the right times
Developing capability, inspire ownership, accountability and trust at all levels, and empowering the workforce
Ensuring equality, diversity and inclusion to continuously establish a fairer workplace for all
Creating and embedding two-way, feedback rich conversations throughout the organisation
Encouraging a culture of excellence, celebrate success, benchmark against world class standards.
The Staff Experience team work in a number of areas, to ensure NHSGGC staff to have the most positive experience. The key areas of work and contact details for the team are outlined below.
The Staff Experience Team
Our Staff Experience team is committed to growing an inclusive organisation, where every employee is treated fairly and consistently, with dignity and respect. To get in touch, please email us at ggc.staffexperience@nhs.scot
The team consists of the following members and you can contact them via the buttons below:
iMatter is the NHS Scotland Staff Experience continuous improvement tool, developed nationally, and used within all NHSScotland Boards.
iMatter is designed to help individuals, teams, Directorates, Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs) and Boards, understand and improve staff experience. This is a term used to describe the extent to which employees feel motivated, supported and cared for at work. It is reflected in levels of engagement, motivation and productivity.
The process is based on a staff engagement questionnaire which all staff are asked to respond to, which generates a Team Report. The team discusses the report and agrees the team strength(s) along with up to 3 improvement actions. This improvement plan is captured on a team ‘Storyboard’ which the team then uses to monitor progress. The process is then completed annually.
For any questions, support or guidance regarding iMatter, or if you would like to share any iMatter success stories, please contact the iMatter mailbox at ggc.nhsggc.imatter@nhs.scot
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The security of our staff is paramount within NHSGGC. To enable our line managers to support their staff, the Human Resources teams monitor the international threat level for the UK. The UK threat levels are set by the Joint Terrorism Analysis Centre (JTAC)
JTAC analyses and assesses all intelligence relating to international terrorism, at home and overseas. It sets threat levels and issues warnings of threats and other terrorist-related subjects for customers from a wide range of government departments and agencies, as well as producing more in-depth reports on trends, terrorist networks and capabilities.
JTAC brings together counter-terrorist expertise from various organisations. This information is analysed and then shared across UK Government organisations.
JTAC works closely with MI5, which manages investigations into terrorist activity in the UK. This enables it to assess the nature and extent of the threat in this country.
Current national threat level
The five UK threat levels are categorised as follows:
Low means an attack is highly unlikely
Moderate means an attack is possible, but not likely
Substantial means an attack is likely
Severe means an attack is highly likely
Critical means an attack is highly likely in the near future
The UK threat level was lowered from Severe to Substantial on 09 February 2022.
If you are concerned about security within your workplace, you should discuss your concerns with your line manager in the first instance. Alternatively, you can contact the Human Resources Support and Advice Unit for further guidance.
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This webpage will summarise the key amendments, policy changes or workforce initiatives updated on HR Connect.
The Dying to Work Charter was adopted by NHS Scotland in March 2021, and endorsed by NHSGGC Chief Executive and Employee Director. It sets out an agreed way in which our staff will be supported, protected and guided throughout their employment, following a terminal diagnosis. Please select the header above to be taken to the agreement and management guide.
For further information on training and contact information, view the Whistleblowing Policy.
29 March – Gender Reassignment Policy review
The Gender Reassignment Policy sets out NHSGGC’s roles and responsibilities as a service provider to patients who have the protected characteristic of Gender Reassignment.
01 March – Scottish Government Bonus Payment
Please refer to the frequently asked questions regarding the NHS Scotland’s agreed qualifying criteria for the £500 one-off payment announced by the First Minister.
2020
09 November – Living Wage Employer
We are delighted to announce NHSGGC are now a Living Wage Employer.
What is a Living Wage employer?
A living wage employer ensures that all employees aged 18 and over, including certain classes of contracted staff, are paid at least the living wage.The employer also agrees to increase the amount which it pays to employees by the same amount as any increase in the living wage within six months of the date of the official announcement.
What is living wage accreditation?
Living wage employer accreditation is managed by citizens UK and provides employers with a licence to the living wage employer mark. The accreditation process is simple and is open to employers already paying the living wage, or those committed to an agreed timetable of implementation.
12 August – Medical Appraisal and Revalidation
Dr Gregor Smith (Interim Chief Medical Officer to all Responsible Officers in Scotland) has written to all NHS Scotland Health Boards regarding the national arrangement for restarting Medical Appraisals.
The NHSGGC recruitment system will shortly be upgraded to version 7. This briefing outlines what this will mean as one of NHSGGC’s hiring managers.
16 March – COVID-19 update
Please keep up to date with the latest guidance and frequently asked questions on the designated NHSGGC Coronavirus website. This information is updated daily and if you have any questions not covered, please contact email your specific query at staff.covid19@ggc.scot.nhs.uk and we will arrange to update the FAQs to respond to your questions.
02 March – NHS Scotland ‘Once for Scotland’ Workforce policies
Individuals currently within an NHSGGC process should complete the process under that policy, unless they are at the very start of the Attendance or Capability policies in which case they should move across to the NHSScotland Workforce policy on the completion of Stage 1, provided both sides are in agreement. If both sides are not in agreement, the individual will remain on the NHSGGC policy.
Where a process is underway within an NHSGGC policy, the policy and supporting documents, including template letters can be accessed through HR Connect – Policies & Associated Guidance.
05 February – NHS Scotland Staff Pension Policy
Further to the Core Brief on the 29 November 2019 and following the recent Pension Information sessions delivered across GGC, a copy of the presentation and frequently asked questions can be found at REC Information.
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To support employees who may be affected by the impacts of international events, we want to ensure staff are aware of the resources available to them. We take the wellbeing of our employees very seriously and pride ourselves on being a diverse and inclusive workforce.
It is understandable that international events might make you may feel anxious, upset or overwhelmed. In recognition of this, we ask that anyone who is experiencing difficulties, whatever they may be, to raise this with their line manager in the first instance or through the Human Resources Support and Advice Unit. By advising us of any concerns you have will enable us to take a person-centred approach to assist you in your role, during these uncertain times.
If you have loved ones currently in an area directly impacted by an event, we appreciate you may wish to keep in more regular contact with them. As such, should you wish to discuss temporary adjustments to your working hours, rest breaks or duties, we will do our upmost to accommodate this through our Flexible Working Policies.
We would also like to remind you that you have access to a range of confidential support. This includes: self-help, money advice, mental health and wellbeing and the NHSGGC Counselling Service.
We understand people may have differing views of international events; however, the organisation does not condone any form of bullying, harassment, or discriminatory behaviour. We would like to remind all staff members to use respectful and appropriate language and be kind to colleagues.
Similarly, staff are reminded to only use appropriate channels to communicate in line with our Email Usage policy, Internet Acceptable Use policy; and our Personal Use of Social Media policy, and to, at all times, be sensitive to the individual circumstances of others.
Questions or Concerns
Should you have any questions or concerns regarding these matters, please do not hesitate to reach out to the Human Resources Support and Advice Unit. If you are a member of a Trade Union/Professional Organisation they may also provide you with advice and support.
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