Meet our Council of Governors

I have come to the NHS late in life, having been a career Officer in the Army for 20 years and having spent 25 years in business, predominantly in Germany. I am hopeful that the navigational skills and varied languages learned will enable me as a Governor to navigate through the maze of different authorities with whom the KGH Trust works in one way or another and my language skills will eventually enable me to understand the new language and acronyms with which I now need to be familiar.

I am learning how the Trust works and how the different Groups and Committees interact and I hope the lessons I learned in business management will help me communicate through each level.

I have had need of assistance both from my practice in Corby (Lakeside) and from KGH and am privileged to have the chance to offer something in return. I look forward to the challenge of being a Public Governor for Corby for the next 3 years.

I was born in Kettering and left school without any qualifications to work initially for Texas Instruments in Bedford before moving to live in Dallas, USA.

I then moved to Haslemere Surrey where I set up my own international company, IPTest, travelled around the world and received a Queens award for my work in Japan. My company was taken over by US company LTX and after two years I retired and returned to live in Northamptonshire where I became a councillor for Old Village and Stanion for ten years.

I also funded, whilst living in Haslemere, a charity for special needs children, Busy Bees holding weekly events and paying for holidays.

I am passionate about health care and ensuring it meets the highest standards possible. I am Northamptonshire born and bred and support local people in bringing forward relevant issues.

Informing people about the work of the hospital as well as encouraging people to join the KGH Foundation Trust has been a key initiative.

Having worked in the NHS for over 20 years managing a dietetic service in Bedfordshire I have a good understanding of the issues faced in providing services to patients. I now work as a freelance consultant dietician and undertake various projects including audits of services for the NHS. Thus I am up to date in issues like new ways of working and management.

I act as an expert witness plus was editor of Nutrition and Food Science and have written a number of books as well as having a successful blog.

As a Dietician I have an innate understanding of the role of nutrition in care and reducing costs of hospital stay.

My MBA is in Quality and Health Care and I have lectured in this and am able to be able to provide a balanced view regarding good Governance.

My PhD is in Diet and Diabetes which is a major cost to the NHS.

I am married with two adult children and one Granddaughter. I joined the Board of Governors’ in September 2016 so I am a relative newcomer.

I worked for Local Government for 25 years and have knowledge in Budgets, Managing Staff and Nutrition along with the other skills that I have learned over the years.

I have always been an advocate of the NHS and I have reason to be grateful not only for my own health but that of my family.

I hope that my contribution as a Governor will be beneficial and that I will be worthy of this role. 

It is my goal to assist the delivery of continuing patient care offering an independent community view.  I hope to continue this ambition in the next 3 years having previously served as a public elected Governor and was the Chair of the Performance Committee. I have also volunteered as a as a Patient Representative member of the Urgent Care Project team developing a business case for the new Urgent Care Hub (A&E). 

With 32 years of project management in industry and extensive personal and family experience of the working of KGH (and other healthcare authorities) I am well placed to use my knowledge to help further the Trust’s visions and plans.

I am a Parish Councillor and a Governor of a Kettering School.

As a Public Governor for the Kettering Constituency I will strive to ensure the interests of KGH NHS Foundation Trust members and partner organisations.

I have spent almost half my life in Kettering where I received good post graduate speciality training. I then left to complete my higher surgical training in Newcastle, Sheffield and Leicester. I came back as a consultant in ENT/ Head &Neck Surgeon1986 -2011. I represented KGH in The Community Health Council until its dissolution. I was appointed External Assessor for The Health Services Ombudsman 1999-2010 and as a member of the Oxford Governance Forum undertook regular visits to Hospitals in the Oxford Region.

I did and continue to do Charity Work (Sheffield Int. Conference for Teaching Doctors in the Developing world), Egyptian Medical Society Medical Missions to Teach &Treat in Egypt. I am grateful to our Friends in the Corby Grampian Club for assisting in purchasing equipment.

I hope to utilise the experience gathered over the years to help understand and advise on governance issues concerning Providers and Recipients of health services in Kettering General Hospital.

Peter is a Chartered Engineer by profession and a visiting Professor at Northumbria University in the Built and Natural Environment school.

He has been involved in the public sector for most of his 40+ years working life. Spending the majority of time in the healthcare sector and social housing where his senior management experience includes, general, construction and asset and facilities management.

Since 2000, he has been Head of Construction and Facilities Management for the Department of Health, project lead at the Office of Government Commerce, (OGC) part of the Treasury and Managing Director of a private sector procurement company providing services for the National Decent Homes Program in social housing. Since 2011 Peter has taken on chairmanship of a number of organisations including Healthcare Facilities Consortium, Grovenbridge Academy and Constructing Excellence in Learning Ltd. His other roles including main board director at Constructing Excellence and a Trustee of the Patients Association, a position held since 2010, during which time he was joint chair for 4 years.

He runs a mentoring company and speaks regularly at conferences and seminars on Construction and FM related topics

I have been a business owner and director for most of my working life. For the last 22 years as finance and operations director with a company specialising in the publishing of historical journals and magazines for the British Armed Forces.

I am interested in the role that patients can play in the structuring of future projects and improving services within the NHS. Since retirement I have become involved with local health groups: as a member of my local Patient Participation Group, as Chair of Wellingborough Health Engagement Group and as a participant in the Patient and Public Participation Committee (PPPC).

I hope that with my previous experience I will be an asset to the Council of Governors and I look forward to being an active member.

I have been a member of several health groups both internally with Kettering General Hospital and externally through LINKs and Public and Patient forums. I was a member of the groups that worked on the Treatment Centre and was instrumental in getting the no-touch toilet and handwashing facilities at the Nene Park Out Patient Department.

The giving and receiving of information is vital in any given situation and my belief in good information is key to any successful change. My ability to see both sides of a discussion having been a staff member and a patient/relative can often balance a decision.

I have been a member of several committees over the years and chaired some of them. I have experience in note taking and report writing.

I am pleased to be able to represent the community in which I live and support Kettering General Hospital.

I have lived in Wellingborough, where I am Borough Councillor for Rixon Ward & County Councillor for Croyland & Swanspool Division, since 2001 and am a very active, committed Community Champion. I now hope to contribute, as Wellingborough’s voice, to KGH, which I believe in passionately and whose improvement journey I want to help.

I am a regular visitor to KGH, Isebrook & Nene Park as a volunteer medical driver, also assisting attendees to access many wards and departments, so I see much of the site and experience patients’ views, but, am keen to represent all users.

I am keen that the disadvantaged live better lives, patients to return to their communities promptly and to see improvements for all patients in getting quality treatment at the earliest opportunity.

At NCC, I am Chairman of the £2.2bn Pensions fund, Finance Scrutiny Vice-Chairman and a former Assistant Cabinet Member, Finance, so well used to dealing with large sums and organisations and bring finance & IT skills to the hospital as well as knowledge about partner organisations to improve understanding and partnership.

For the Borough, I am a past Mayor and current Services Committee Chairman, with community and health responsibility, as well as having held other posts. My promotion of partnership working led to being in the ‘leading lights’ cadre of Councillors.

I have worked in the NHS for 20 years; 12 of those years have been at Kettering General Hospital. 

Starting as an Administration Apprentice in Glebe House I have gone on to work in various roles across the trust; in Human Resources, Medical Records, Service Improvement and currently Information Technology, where I am employed as the Trust’s Patient Systems Manager. 

Living locally, I have experienced ‘the other side’, receiving a good service from the areas of the Trust that I (and my family) have been seen by. 

As a KGH member of staff and a local patient, I welcome the opportunity to be part of maintaining and improving further, the services that our hospital delivers. 

I joined KGH in December 2016 after moving from the West Midlands. I joined the outpatient’s team mainly working in Frank Radcliffe clinic, and then I moved on to become the clinic scheduler for Trauma and orthopaedics.

I am hoping to bring my skills and knowledge to the governing body as I have been a staff governor twice before as well as parent governor and a parish councillor.

Patient care is always at the front of mind and gives 100 per cent to do my best for the patients I come into contact with. I am committed to KGH and I want to do my best not only for patients but for staff too.

I am a friendly and approachable person

I am an elected member of Northamptonshire County Council and am pleased to have been appointed as a Stakeholder Governor at Kettering General Hospital. I also sit on East Northants Council.

I have spent time both in the Royal Navy and in the Private Sector, working in Personnel for a group of companies in London.

The NHS has challenging times ahead and I welcome the opportunity to support the Trust as it strives to improve the services it offers.

After many years living in Leicestershire, with the majority of time in Market Harborough, Leicestershire, I moved to Desborough in 2014.   I have two grown up children and five grandchildren.  I retired from full-time work in 2017.

For most of my career I have worked in the Community and Voluntary Sector in Leicestershire.  This began with Harborough Home Start, and then as Manager of the Market Harborough Volunteer Bureau.  In 1995 I joined CLASP The Carers Centre as County Advocacy and Development Worker, providing advocacy at community care assessment and review meetings, support with welfare benefit claims, organising promotional events and helping to develop a network of local carers’ forums across Leicestershire.  I was appointed Centre Manager in 2000 - a post I held for 9 years.   After winning a contract to be one of two pilot sites for a new national programme for carers called "Caring with Confidence", I joined the programme’s national team.  In 2013 I was appointed Community Networking Officer with Northamptonshire LINK, which became Northamptonshire Healthwatch in 2013.   

Having made quite a few links with Corby though my work at Healthwatch, I was pleased to become a trustee with Access Corby, a local infrastructure organisation, who nominated me as a Governor with Kettering General Hospital.

I am a retired registered General Nurse with vast experience in nursing and management.

I have a particular interest in bringing quality care into the workplace. I trained at Kettering General Hospital where I held a series of senior roles before moving to South Wales where I obtained a degree to teach nursing.  I have held a number of positions including Lead Nurse Education Independent Sector; Investigator of complaints in the health service and Investors in People Advisor.

I undertake a lot of voluntary work including work with the Samaritans, Healthwatch: 15 steps challenge at Kettering General Hospital as well as being a patient representative

I trained as a Social Worker and completed Masters and Social Work qualification from Warwick University.

 I worked with the BBC for over 20 years where I pioneered a local BBC Radio service targeting the Asian communities into a regional and ultimately a national digital Radio station. As Head of BBC Asian Network led on a number of transformational developments to create a BBC radio service targeting the newly arrived immigrant population to a service reaching out second and third generation British Asian diaspora.

 I have served as a non- executive Director on East Midlands Strategic Health and Midlands and East Strategic Health Authority, Leicestershire and Rutland Probation Trust.

Currently, I serve as a non- executive Director on East Midlands Ambulance Trust and Chair the Workforce Committee. Leicester University Council Member along with member of the Audit committee, Development Board and Leicester University Medical Schools Professional Concerns Group.

 I am Trustee on Leicester Theatre Trust and Chair the Trusts HR Committee.

Trustee roles on Gingerbread and the Caxton Foundation.

 I am very pleased to serve as Leicester University's stakeholder Governor on Kettering General Hospital Foundation Trust because of collaborative links between the two organisations, important partnership in training tomorrow's doctors and my deep commitment to high quality patient experience and outcomes.

Qualified from Sheffield University MB Chb in 1969.

Had 2 years’ hospital experience in the Sheffield area.

Worked as a GP in Bingley, West Yorkshire until 1978.

Moved to Linden Avenue surgery, Kettering 1978 and worked as a GP in Kettering area until my 65^th birthday.

I then worked as a medical judge for H.M.Courts and Tribunal Service (Coventry area) until I reached the retirement age of 71.

Joined Kettering MIND as a volunteer in October 2001. Appointed to Trustee Board approximately 14 months later and elected treasurer 2 year ago.

I have been married to Dorothy for 45 years; have 3 sons, 3 daughters-in-law and 6 grandchildren.

I am very pleased to be involved in the governance of Kettering General Hospital Foundation Trust at this time as it continues to make progress on caring for older people. For someone who is frail, vulnerable or has a dementia, who may be on the edge of his or her limits of coping at home in a familiar environment, and who is seeing the same people and doing the same things each day, the effect of going into hospital can be overwhelming.

Small considerations in how care is delivered can help to create a more positive hospital experience for individuals and for older people it is important that their care is shaped not just by their illness or frailty but also by the wider context of their life and relationships.

Sue has led a team of health and social care professionals working alongside community volunteers, to deliver a national Falls project and developed a successful relationship with a commercial healthcare provider which resulted in a substantial contract for Age UK Northamptonshire.

My background is in education as a Primary School Teacher. I have a Teacher’s Certificate of Education, a BA in Sociology & The Sociology of Education, a Reading Development Diploma and a Certificate of Advanced Professional Studies – Learning Through the Integrated Curriculum (together with colleagues wrote a book of the same title).

My last job was running The Small Schools Project in Cornwall working with all the small schools across the county in groups to enable pupils to work together and staff to share expertise. I worked with Exeter and Warwick Universities who were monitoring the project and sat on the Steering Committee at the Department of Education.

I had been my husband’s carer for fifteen years when I got involved in the Patient and Public Involvement Forum at the end of 2004 when the PPI Forums were introduced and I opted to get involved ay KGH. I have also been involved with the Local Involvement Networks until they were replaced by Healthwatch Northamptonshire and I have been a member of Healthwatch ever since.

When KGH became a Foundation Trust I was one of the first elected governors representing East Northamptonshire.

Representing Healthwatch I am involved in auditing and monitoring Health and Social Care Services mainly in the north of the county. With my colleague Wendy Patel I carry out the 15 Steps Challenge Audits on the wards and other areas at KGH, sit on the Patient Experience Steering Committee and am a Patient Representative on the Safeguarding Steering Committee.

My aim is to work towards getting the best health care experience for patients. Communication is essential and patient involvement vital.