THE council of governors for Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust welcomed four new governors this month.

The governors work alongside the trust’s board of directors and have an important role in making an NHS foundation trust publicly accountable for the services it provides.

They bring valuable perspectives and contributions to its activities.

Importantly, they hold non-executive directors to account for the performance of the board and represent the interests of NHS foundation trust members and the public.

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Made up of individuals from a variety of backgrounds, the council includes 15 public governors, five staff governors and five appointed governors.

The new governors are June Bird, Malcolm Hand, Margaret Paull and Steve Turner.

Speaking about the new additions, Steve Erskine, chairman of the board, said: “I am delighted to welcome our new governors and look forward to working with them, especially as we look ahead to an exciting new chapter for our Trust with the new hospital programme.

“Hospitals sit at the heart of a community, serving the public in a fundamentally important way. Our Council of Governors provides invaluable insight and guidance; helping shape the Trust’s strategy to ensure it reflects the needs of the locality and providing transparency that is key to maintaining public confidence in our services.

“Hampshire Hospitals is led by a visionary team of clinical and non-clinical executives who work diligently to deliver the very best for our patients while creating a successful workplace that enables careers to thrive. They work extremely successfully with the Council of Governors and value their contribution, whether that is the provision of a different perspective, or an understanding of best practice that can deliver real benefit for Hampshire Hospitals.”

The next public council of governors meeting will take place at 3.30pm on Thursday, February 8 at The Ark Conference Centre, located on the grounds of Basingstoke and North Hampshire Hospital. You can register to attend by emailing Company.Secretary@hhft.nhs.uk.

New Governors

June Bird

Retired nurse, June Bird, enjoyed a 40-year career with the NHS in a variety of clinical, educational, senior operational and managerial roles; latterly working as a turnaround/transformation consultant on successful large scale improvement projects. Through her career, June acquired a wealth of leadership understanding and experience enabling her to develop an innate understanding of managerial excellence.

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Malcolm Hand

Retired NHS renal consultant, Malcolm Hand, grew up in the Compton and Shawford area of Winchester. The bulk of Malcolm’s career has been spent in Lanarkshire, where he became involved in managing the development of Renal Services within the Trust and the integration of the service with the Glasgow Renal Team. He and his wife returned to Hampshire in 2020 following their retirement.

Margaret Paull

Former teacher, Margaret Paull, is a highly qualified educational psychologist with considerable experience in working with children and adults with special needs. Following her move to Hampshire in the 1990s, Margaret took up a senior lectureship at King Alfred’s College, (now Winchester University) with responsibility for all courses in SEND. Margaret’s career has included international work, most notably in Greece and the Middle East; as well as time spent carrying out dyslexia assessments for - among others – individuals serving in the British Army. 

Steve Turner

Steve Turner joins the board from the education industry although he is a former non-executive director of Healthwatch Hampshire, where he represented the citizen and patient voice in developing the Integrated Care Service (ICS).  As well as having been a lecturer and an educational psychologist, Steve led a consultancy providing applied psychology to senior leaders and organisations across all sectors including the UN.