Our Council of Governors

Details

Last Updated: Tuesday, 16 February 2021 11:39

Bertie (Roberta) Swan – Public Governor for Elmbridge

 

It is with great sadness that we share the news of the unexpected death of our friend and ASPH Governor colleague, Bertie Swan. Bertie was in her second term as Public Governor for Elmbridge, a role which she had started in December 2016.

It has been a shock, not only for us, but for her Governor colleagues too, as they had recently either spoken with her or attended a meeting together. Governors and Trust staff remember how enthusiastic and hard-working she was, often being first in line to volunteer for any additional membership activities.

Bertie was also great fun and had a wonderful sense of humour, often bringing some much needed light-heartedness to discussions.

Lead Governor Danny Sparkes said:

“I knew Bertie for over 30 years on and off whilst we both worked within ASPH. She had been a Sister on Day Ward at St Peter's Hospital, then in Occupational Health and more latterly working at The Runnymede Hospital.”

“I caught up with her again when she was elected as the Public Governor for Elmbridge in 2016. She was enthusiastic and very keen to learn about being a Governor, and making a difference especially from the patient point of view. She frequently joined in with events at the Hospital and was a member of the Patient Panel and the Patient Experience Group, and several other committees. She felt however, that one of her more important 'jobs' was on the Pastoral Care Team / End of Life Team at the hospitals. She also worked in the Maternity Unit as a 'listening ear' and volunteered at the Princess Alice Hospice.”

“She was a colourful person and we spent many a happy hour or three talking, talking, talking over coffee, lunch and tea (with cake, of course) at the local garden centre and were really looking forward to being able to do this again.”

“Bertie was always very generous in her gratitude to Trust staff and, being a retired nurse herself, she appreciated the pressures staff were under, especially more recently with the pandemic. She was always the first at Council of Governor meetings to round off with praise for the hard work of the executives, non-executives and of course the staff.”

“Bertie will be greatly missed by us all.”

Laurence Gamlen, Chaplain at ASPH, said:

“Bertie was a well loved and respected member of the Trust’s Chaplaincy volunteer team. She converted to Judaism quite late in her life, and her faith brought her great comfort. As part of the team, she would visit Abbey Wing and enjoyed spending time in the maternity unit. She will be greatly missed.”

Our thoughts are very much with Bertie’s loved ones at this difficult time.

Andy Field, Chairman
Suzanne Rankin, Chief Executive

NHS Foundation Trusts are membership organisations, giving local people and staff, as members of the organisation, a greater influence in shaping its future.

I believe wholeheartedly in the Chief Executive’s vision of being the best performing Trust in the UK and a centre of excellence for patient care.

Currently we have a Board of Directors that is legally accountable for running the Trust. It has a Chairman, seven Non-Executive Directors (lay people appointed by the Council of Governors for three year terms) and seven Executive Directors (who are employees).

In addition to this Board of Directors, Foundation Trust members have elected a Council of Governors. The Council is important and influential in the way that it represents workforce colleagues and the community, giving their views to the Board of Directors on the organisation’s future direction. It does not run the Trust or get involved with the day-to-day operational issues.

There are currently 25 members of the Council of Governors – 14 public governors, five staff governors, and six appointed governors from the local councils and universities.

Governors have two main duties:

• To hold the Non-Executive Directors, individually and collectively, to account for the performance of the Board and Directors; and
• To represent the interests of the members of the Trust as a whole and the interests of the public.

Statutory powers include appointing the Chairman and Non-Executive Directors; approving significant transactions (as defined by the Trust’s Constitution) and approving amendments to the Trust’s Constitution.

Governors do not receive a salary but do receive expenses incurred in carrying out their role.

Meet our Governors

In this section, we have details of our Council of Governors of Ashford and St Peter's Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

		Helen Pernelet Elmbridge Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022				David Carpenter Elmbridge Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Vacant Elmbridge Constituency
		Hina Malik Hounslow, Richmond-upon-Thames and Kingston-upon-Thames Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022				Edwin Addis Hounslow, Richmond-upon-Thames and Kingston-upon-Thames Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Dr Lilly Evans Runnymede, Surrey Heath, Windsor and Maidenhead Constituency 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021				Danny Sparkes Runnymede, Surrey Heath, Windsor and Maidenhead Constituency 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021
		Chris Marks Runnymede, Surrey Heath, Windsor and Maidenhead Constituency 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021
		Neal Adolphus Spelthorne Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022				Colin Hood Spelthorne Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Derek Barnes Spelthorne Constituency 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Michael Smith Woking and Guildford 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022				Shirley Holmes Woking and Guildford 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Miranda Alcock Woking and Guildford 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Julian Ruse Staff Governor: Ancilliary / Admin Clerical / Managerial 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021				Tom Allan Staff Governor: Hospital Volunteers 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021
		Oscar Garcia-Casas Staff Governor: Medical and Dental 1st Dec 2018 to 30th Nov 2021				Tracey Bradshaw Staff Governor: Nursing and Midwifery 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Matt Stevenson Staff Governor: Allied Health Professionals 1st Dec 2019 to 30th Nov 2022
		Councillor Iftikhar Chaudhri Appointed Governor: Runnymede Borough Council				Councillor Rose Chandler Appointed Governor: Spelthorne Borough Council
		Councillor Sinead Mooney Appointed Governor: Surrey County Council				Councillor Deborah Hughes Appointed Governor: Woking Borough Council
		Professor Melaine Coward Appointed Governor: University of Surrey				Chris Howorth Appointed Governor: Senior Lecturer in Organisational Strategy, School of Management, The Royal Holloway, University of London

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