I converted the Rainbow NHS Badge design into a cross stitch badge kit, along with two variant designs representing NHS Trans Pride and NHS Progress Pride (AKA More Colour More Pride). I stitched a few badges for my colleagues at Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust (SCFT), but they were really popular and I wanted other people to be able to sew their own too.
Lindsey Stevenson, our LGBT+ Staff Network Co-Chair at SCFT, encouraged me to turn the badges into #SCFTPride kits, so as many people as possible could enjoy them.
The kits included a brooch back, thread, plastic canvas and full instructions, including a shopping list in case other NHS organisations wanted to recreate the kits themselves.
The LGBT+ Staff Network distributed the kits on a non-profit basis, both to SCFT staff and to external NHS staff who requested them via their @sct_lgbt account on Twitter.
I find sewing very relaxing as it helps me to switch off at the end of a busy day, and I was really pleased to see so many people joining in and cross stitching #SCFTPride badges, both for themselves and for their teams.
The badges take around two hours to make, even for experienced stitchers, so everyone who made their own demonstrated dedication to promoting the NHS as an inclusive employer and healthcare provider.
NHS England and NHS Improvement even requested 100 kits for the NHS Expo in September, and distributed them at their Primary Care and System Transformation zone.
You can find out how you can make these kits yourself here