Producing a five-year strategic delivery plan for Ophthalmology services

The Challenge

Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (MFT) set out a clear ambition in its Trust strategy, Where Excellence Meets Compassion (2024–2029). To turn this ambition into meaningful change, the Trust identified priority clinical areas requiring dedicated strategic delivery plans. Ophthalmology was one of those priorities.

Like many Ophthalmology services nationally, Manchester Royal Eye Hospital faces a complex mix of pressures including high demand, workforce constraints, and estates pressures.

MFT commissioned us to support the development of a five‑year strategic delivery plan for Ophthalmology that would:

• Align clearly with the Trust’s overarching strategy
• Be informed by the experience and insights of staff across the service
• Provide a shared framework for prioritisation and delivery over the next five years

Our Approach

Our role was to design and facilitate a structured, inclusive process that enabled colleagues across Manchester Royal Eye Hospital to shape the plan together.

We led a programme of engagement with clinical and operational staff from eleven Ophthalmology subspecialties and three departments. This included facilitated workshops, drop‑in sessions and an online survey, creating multiple opportunities for colleagues to contribute whatever their role. The emphasis throughout was on listening first to understand what was working well, where pressures were being felt most acutely, and where there was energy for change.

Using thematic analysis, we synthesised the engagement feedback into a set of key strengths, challenges and opportunities. These themes were then tested and refined through further workshops with clinical and departmental leads, ensuring they resonated with those who would ultimately be responsible for delivery.

This iterative approach helped to build shared ownership of the emerging priorities and ensured the final plan was both strategically aligned and operationally grounded.

The Outcome and Impact

The programme culminated in the development of a five‑year strategic delivery plan for Ophthalmology that aligned directly with MFT’s strategy and responded to the issues raised by staff during engagement.

The plan provides a clear framework to support decision‑making and prioritisation over the next five years, with a focus on improving both patient and staff experience in the delivery of Ophthalmology services. Just as importantly, the process itself helped to create a shared understanding of the challenges facing the service and a collective sense of direction for addressing them.

By combining structured engagement, evidence‑informed analysis and collaborative refinement, the work supported MFT to move from strategic ambition to a deliverable, service‑owned plan for change.

This case study reflects an approach that may be relevant to other organisations working through similar strategic challenges. Further information about this area of our work is available on our strategy offer page.