Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery

The RCN Foundation Centre for Compassionate Leadership in Nursing and Midwifery (RCNF CCL) aims to support and strengthen leadership that helps people feel able to care – for themselves, for each other and for those they serve, even in the most complex and constrained environments. 

We aim to bridge the gap between compassionate leadership theory and day to day practice. By focusing on the conditions people work within, not just individual behaviours, the Centre will help enable more humane, effective and sustainable health and care systems, now and in the future. 

Why the Centre exists 

The RCN Foundation commissioned The Courage and Compassion report (The King’s Fund, 2020) to respond to growing concern about workforce wellbeing, moral distress and the sustainability of care. The report showed that compassion is not failing because people care less, but because systems often make it harder to care well, for patients, for colleagues and for ourselves. 

At a time of immense and sustained pressure across health and social care, we believe that compassionate leadership is not just a personal trait or an individual skill. It is a collective endeavour, shaped by team relationships, organisational practices and the wider environment. When conditions are right, good people are better able to do good work, every day and make a positive impact on outcomes for those for whom they care. 

The Centre exists to take that learning forward - to operationalise the report’s ABC framework and eight recommendations in practical, applied ways that make a difference in everyday leadership practice. 

Professor Michael West CBE, RCN Foundation Patron, discusses his involvement and the need for the Centre of Compassionate Leadership:

Upcoming events

• Compassionate Leadership Exchange: 17 September 4pm-5pm