This page details who sits on the Trust Board of Directors. For a quick overview, please click on the button below.
Chair and Chief Executive
Chair: David Flory CBE
David Flory joined LUHFT on 27 February 2023 as the Trust Chair until 29 February 2024.
David is the independent chair for Lancashire and South Cumbria Integrated Care System.
He has extensive of board level experience as Chief Executive and Executive Director of NHS organisations in England and healthcare organisations internationally, including six years working as Deputy Chief Executive Director General in the Department of Health for England. David was awarded a CBE in the 2009 New Year’s Honours List.
Between 2015 and 2019, he was the chief of hospitals at Hamad Medical Corporation in the State of Qatar, responsible for 14 hospitals with 2,500 beds, providing a full range of secondary and tertiary services for the country.
Chief Executive: James Sumner
James Sumner joined LUHFT as Chief Executive in May 2022.
James has worked in the NHS for over 20 years in Primary and Secondary Care, System Improvement and Integrated Care roles across the North West. James was previously Chief Executive at Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust before joining LUHFT.
James has more than 20 years of experience in the NHS and was previously Chief Executive at Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
James joined the NHS in 1999, initially working in Primary Care before moving on to several regional quality improvement roles.
He moved into the acute sector in 2005 and has held a number of operational and strategic roles since, including Deputy Chief Executive at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, Chief Officer of Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust and latterly Chief Executive of Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
Non-executive directors
Non-Executive Director: Sheila Samuels (Senior Independent Director)
Sheila joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in September 2020.
Sheila has a wealth of experience in public sector management and leadership. She has previously held Executive and Non-Executive Director Board level roles in local government and the NHS.
As a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, Sheila has been instrumental in furthering effective Human Resource Management within organisations. Since retiring in 2013 after 35 years public service, Sheila has undertaken a number of consultancy assignments to support public sector and charitable organisations in addressing major organisational challenges.
Sheila also possesses an MSc in Humanitarian Studies gained from the Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine. Whilst gaining this qualification, she studied health systems in developing and post conflict countries. Such insight has developed her gratitude and passion in ensuring the continued effectiveness and success of patient care.
Sheila is the Trust Senior Independent Director, Wellbeing Guardian and Non-Executive Director Lead for Doctors Disciplinary.
Sheila’s term of office runs from 1 September 2020 to 31 August 2023.
Non-Executive Director: Professor Thomas Walley
Professor Thomas Walley joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in July 2021.
Tom is the associate Pro-Vice Chancellor for Clinical Research at the University of Liverpool. He was previously a Consultant Physician at The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust between 1991 and 2018, and Professor of Clinical Pharmacology. He was director of several National Institute for Health and Care Research programmes, and a member of the National Institute for Health and Care Research Strategy Board for many years.
Tom was awarded a CBE for services to medicine in 2008. He is a life fellow of the British Pharmacology Society and a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.
Tom’s term of office runs from 1 July 2021 to 30 June 2024.
Non-Executive Director: Mike Eastwood
Mike was appointed a Non-Executive Director at LUHFT on 1 October 2019 – he was previously Non-Executive Director and Interim Chair at The Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospitals NHS Trust. Mike was re-appointed for a further three-year term which runs from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2026.
Mike is currently Diocesan Secretary (Chief Executive) of the Diocese of Liverpool as well as the Chief Officer at Liverpool Cathedral.
He has significant experience of working at director level in the third sector. He currently holds a number of voluntary positions supporting the church and local community development. He has a BA (Hons) in Modern History.
Mike’s term of office runs from 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2026.
Non-Executive Director: Ibrahim Ismail
Ibrahim joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in September 2021.
Ibrahim Ismail has over 19 years’ experience working locally, regionally and nationally in the voluntary and community sector. He has Non-Executive Director experience in the housing sector. Ibrahim's experience includes holding Director positions at Bolton CVS as Chair of Trustees and Senior Independent Director at MSV Housing Association.
Ibrahim's passion is how systems and institutions can be made inclusive and rooted in the local community and how anchor institutions can tackle inequalities in the wider sense.
Ibrahim is the Chair of the Charitable Funds Committee.
Ibrahim’s term of office runs from 1 September 2021 to 31 August 2024.
Non-Executive Director: Eustace De Sousa
Eustace joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in September 2020.
Eustace has worked in social care, health and wellbeing for 20 years in the North West. He has managed adult and children’s social services, and led a range of regeneration, community, and housing programmes. He worked for the NHS in regional health authorities, overseeing health service performance and commissioning.
Between 2013-2020 he worked at a national level for Public Health England, leading on health inequalities, child health and healthy ageing. He is now an independent Public Health Specialist Consultant and an Honorary Fellow at the Royal College for Paediatric and Child Health.
Eustace’s term of office runs from 1 September 2020 to 31 August 2023.
Non-Executive Director: David Gilburt
David joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in December 2023.
David is an experienced Director with a strong track record both as a Non-Executive and Executive Director. He is a qualified accountant, highly skilled in financial management, recovery & turnaround with a demonstrable track record of delivering improvement.
He was previously a Non-Executive Director at the Robert Jones & Agnes Hunt NHS Foundation Trust in Oswestry.
David is currently a Non-Executive Director of the Dudley Integrated Health & Care NHS Trust where he is Chair of the Audit Committee. He also an independent member of the Governance Audit and Risk Committee of the Muir Group Housing Association.
David is Chair of the Audit Committee.
David’s term of office runs from 1 December 2022 to 30 November 2025.
Non-Executive Director: Hayley Citrine
Hayley joined LUHFT as a Non-Executive Director in January 2023.
Hayley has more than 37 years’ experience working in the NHS predominantly in Cheshire & Merseyside, Greater Manchester and Lancashire regions; most recently as Regional Chief Nurse for the North West, focusing on areas such as patient safety, improving quality, coaching executives and leading on national and regional programmes.
Hayley has more than 10 years’ experience working at Board Level, including 3 years as Chief Executive Officer of The Walton Centre NHS Foundation Trust. Prior to this Hayley has held Director posts in both operational and nursing roles. She has a history of significant senior clinical and wider leadership, operational management and governance experience in a variety of acute Trusts.
Hayley has also chaired a number of regional boards including System Improvement Boards and ODNs as well as holding positions on non-NHS Boards too.
Hayley is a Master Practitioner in Neuro-linguistic Programming and has a passion for equality, diversity and inclusion, leading the agenda in several of her executive roles.
Hayley’s term of office runs from 1 January 2023 to 31 December 2025.
Executives
Chief Finance Officer/ Deputy Chief Executive: Rob Forster
Rob joined LUHFT as Deputy Chief Executive Office and Chief Finance Officer in April 2020.
He was previously Director of Finance and Deputy Chief Executive at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh NHS Foundation Trust. After qualifying academically and professionally in Law, Rob then went on to become a Chartered Accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers, and subsequently achieved a Masters in Business Administration.
Rob worked in a variety of senior finance and director roles within General Motors, living and working in both the UK and Europe for a number of years. Rob joined the NHS in 2009.
In addition to his Trust role, Rob chairs the national HFMA Technical Issues Group, Cheshire & Merseyside Provider CFO Group, Finance Skills Development Steering Group and is on the Board of the NHS Finance Leadership Council.
Rob is passionate about advancing the inclusive reach and effectiveness of the Finance profession in the NHS and beyond, with a special interest in innovation and Social Value.
Chief Medical Officer: Dr Jim Gardner
Dr Jim Gardner joined LUHFT as Chief Medical Officer in June 2022.
In a career of over 30 years, Jim has undertaken senior leadership roles across primary and secondary care, the private sector, charitable sector and academia.
Having studied medicine at Cambridge University and London, Jim undertook a series of clinical roles across England and Australia before becoming a GP Partner in a high performing practice in Cumbria. During this time, he established an out-of-hours GP co-operative for South Lakeland and was the founder executive chair for several years.
Jim then became the Medical Director of North Lancashire Primary Care Trust and subsequently the Medical Director and Responsible Officer for the Lancashire Area Team of NHS England. He was a Health Foundation Leadership Fellow and a member of the NHS Top Leaders programme.
Jim also worked in the School of Medicine at the University of Central Lancashire and helping to establish a brand-new medical school for the northwest of England. At this time, he also held posts as a trustee of a hospice and a non-executive director of an NHS hospital trust.
In January 2020, Jim was appointed as the Executive Medical Director at Blackpool Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and held that post until his appointment to LUHFT.
Chief Nursing Officer: David Melia
David joined LUHFT as Chief Nursing Officer in July 2022.
David is the former Director of Nursing and Quality at The Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, a role which he held between 2015 and 2022.
Originally from Liverpool, David is both a Registered General Nurse and Registered Nurse for People with Learning Disabilities. His main clinical speciality was neurology and neurosurgery, and he has previously held Director of Nursing roles at The Walton Centre NHS FT and Warrington and Halton Teaching Hospitals NHS FT.
David’s main focus is to further develop a culture within organisations that sets patient safety at the heart of what everyone does by engaging colleagues to be the very best that they can be.
Chief People Officer: Heather Barnett
Heather joined LUHFT in January 2023 as Chief People Officer.
She was previously Executive Director of People and Organisational Development at Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS foundation Trust, a role which she held between 2018 and 2022. Heather also became the Interim Deputy Chief Executive at Mid Cheshire Hospitals Foundation Trust for a period of time, during 2022.
Heather has previously worked at Clatterbridge Cancer Centre NHS Foundation Trust as the Director of Workforce and Organisational Development and brings a wealth of expertise in successful change management, organisational development and executive coaching. Her career started in the NHS in 2002 at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in Wales, leading the wellbeing and inclusion agenda.
Heather has over 10 years’ experience of working as a Director within the NHS. During this time, Heather has focused her energy and passion in developing leadership capability and actively promoting women in leadership.
Heather has a Masters degree in Human Resource Management and a further Masters degree in Executive coaching.
Chief Operating Officer: Beth Weston
Beth was appointed Chief Operating Officer at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust on 1 October 2019 – she was previously Chief Operating Officer at Aintree University Hospital.
Beth joined Aintree University Hospital in April 2015 and was appointed Acting Chief Operating Officer in October 2017 before becoming substantive on 1 February 2019. Beth previously worked at Central Manchester University Hospitals (CMFT) for 12 years as director for a number of hospitals, more latterly as Director of Trafford Hospital following its acquisition by CMFT in 2011.
Beth joined the NHS in 1995 and graduated from the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme in 1997. During this period Beth also graduated from Manchester University with a masters in managing healthcare organisations.
Director of Strategy and Partnerships: Jan Ledward
Jan joined LUHFT as Director of Strategy and Partnerships in April 2023.
Jan started her career as a temporary band 2 clerical officer in the supplies department at the Royal Albert Hospital, Lancaster in March 1984. She worked for 10 years in NHS Supplies in various roles including Regional Transport Buyer for the North West, a national role transferring wheelchair services from the Civil Service into the NHS, before being appointed as Deputy Director of Commissioning at Salford Health Authority at the time of the purchaser provider split.
In 2005, she worked for the North West Strategic Health authority as Programme Director for the Advancing Quality programme, developing the programme and rolling it out to all trusts across the North West. She has worked in many commissioning leadership and Board roles becoming the Accountable Officer of two Clinical Commissioning Groups, Great Preston and Chorley and South Ribble, before taking on the same role in Liverpool Clinical Commissioning Groups in 2017 leading the development of the One Liverpool strategy. More recently she was Cheshire and Merseyside Integrated Care Board Place Director for Liverpool upon the creation of the Integrated Care Board in 2022.
She is professional qualified in Procurement and Supply Chain Management and has an Master of Business Administration from Hull University.
Director of Corporate Affairs/Company Secretary: Daniel Scheffer
Daniel joined LUHFT in January 2021 as Director of Corporate Affairs/Company Secretary.
Following a successful career in high street and private banking in the UK, and further afield, Daniel chose to make the move into the civil service. From an initial role in the NHS South East regional office he moved into a number of roles in Whitehall. These included working in the private office of a number of Health Ministers and latterly as the Ambulance Policy lead for England. His time in Whitehall was pivotal in cementing his desire to work in the NHS.
Daniel took on challenging operational roles in the NHS in Cumbria, gradually building expertise in organisational governance. He left the NHS in Cumbria as a trusted Company Secretary, with a strong track record of supporting organisational culture change.
His previous experience of building high performing and happy teams is something he seeks to bring to his role at LUHFT.
Director of Communications: Chris Mawdsley
Chris Mawdsley joined LUHFT initially as the Interim Director of Communications and Marketing in October 2019. He took up the permanent position from 1st June 2020.
Chris brings 20 years’ experience of working in a range of communications, engagement, marketing and policy roles across the public and private sectors prior to joining the NHS.
He brings extensive experience of delivering high profile communications projects, community engagement working with hard-to-reach communities, campaigns and public consultation. For over a decade, Chris ran the parliamentary office and campaigns for a North West Member of Parliament. He also brings experience from working in regeneration and economic development, local government, and consultancy. Chris also led on the communications and engagement for major planning and development schemes in the property sector.
Siobhan Roberts: Director of Quality Improvement
Siobhan joined LUHFT in August 2021 as the Director of Quality Improvement and was appointed to implement an organisation-wide approach to improvement with evidenced-based methods.
Siobhan began her career at The Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, a global leader in applying improvement science in healthcare. While at IHI, Siobhan’s particular focus was on improving evidenced based care delivery for people with chronic conditions and levelling up communities with healthcare disparities. Siobhan worked with the Indian Health Service and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality on implementing improvements in primary care for communities across the US.
Siobhan joined the NHS in 2008. Prior to joining LUHFT she was the Director of Quality Improvement at Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, latterly the Northern Care Alliance. She held this role for 12 years and during her tenure there, led the development and implementation of several successful Quality and Safety Strategies. Siobhan is an enthusiastic advocate for the benefits of applying various sciences and disciplines to improve care for patients and joy in work for our staff.
Executive Managing Director for Aintree University Hospital: Peter Turkington
Peter Turkington joined LUHFT in May 2023 as Executive Managing Director for Aintree Hospital. Before joining LUHFT, Peter worked at Salford Care Organisation, firstly as Medical Director between 2013-2019 and then as Chief Officer and Medical Director.
He was also chair of the division of Salford healthcare between 2010 and 2013, where he led on the development of the Emergency Village.
Peter’s experience in overseeing several of these initiatives are of great value to the ever-developing Aintree site where he manages all elements of care,
as well as leading and managing the Aintree Hospital against our agreed strategy and objectives.
Executive Managing Director for The Royal Liverpool University Hospital: Natalie Hudson
Natalie Hudson joined LUHFT as Executive Managing Director for the Royal Liverpool site in May 2023.
Natalie commenced her NHS career in 2009 as a qualified accountant before working as Director of Operations at East Lancashire Hospitals and more recently, Blackpool Teaching Hospitals where she was Chief Operating Officer from April 2021 to before she joined LUHFT.
She has a wealth of knowledge and experience in surgery, theatres, critical care and emergency medicine. She has also led on several large-scale initiatives to improve patient experience and flow.
As Executive Managing Director, Natalie plays a critical role in supporting the delivery of our ongoing improvement plan by working alongside our Hospital Leadership Teams and managing all elements of care.
