In this section...

  1. How we make decisions
  2. Our priorities
  3. Policies and procedures
  4. What we spend and how we spend it
  5. Who we are and what we do
  6. Work for us

Governors and members

About the Council of Governors

The Council of Governors help to shape the Trust's services and future plans. Anyone aged 16 and over who is a member of the Trust is eligible to apply. If you are not already a member you can join online using the membership form below.

19 people make up the Trust's Council of Governors. 11 public governors, 4 staff governors, and 4 appointed governors. The Trust's appointed governors represent Cornwall Council, the Council of the Isles of Scilly, Truro and Penwith College, and Volunteer Cornwall.

The Council of Governors meets 4 times a year. The Trust pays governors' travel expenses for face-to-face meetings and site visits.

Governors' declaration of interests (opens in new window) (PDF, 117 KB)

Attend a Council of Governors' meeting

Like our Board of Directors' meetings, these meetings are also held in public. You are welcome to attend and observe the meetings or watch a live stream.

All meetings start at 10am. 

  • 21 July 2026 on Microsoft Teams.
  • 6 October 2026. This meeting will be held in public at St Austell Conference Centre, St Austell PL25 4FD.
  • 1 December 2026 on Microsoft Teams.
  • 9 March 2027. This meeting will be held in public at St Austell Conference Centre, St Austell PL25 4FD.

Annual members' meeting

Our annual members' meeting is planned for 16 September 2026 (venue and time to be confirmed).

Council of Governors papers

The Council of Governors' meeting papers do not meet digital accessibility regulations. We are working on making our meeting papers accessible.

Call 01208 834 600 to request older Council of Governors' papers.

2026

2025

2024

2023

Governor elections

Our annual election process starts in November each year. We announce the names of our new Governors in February. Our new Governors take up their positions on 1 March.

2025-26 election

  • Notice of elections and nominations open on Friday 14 November 2025.
  • Deadline for receipt of nominations is Friday 12 December 2025.
  • A notice of poll will be published on Wednesday 7 January 2026.
  • Voting packs will be despatched to members on Thursday 8 January 2026.
  • Closing date for the election is Monday 2 February 2026.
  • Results of the election will be available on Tuesday 3 February 2026.

Visit Civica's Governor elections page for more information.

2024-25 election

We appointed the following Governors to the below constituencies (uncontested):

  • East service area constituency: Lauren Hobbs.
  • West service area constituency: Jane Johnson and Penny Philips (1 vacancy remains).
  • Other constituency: Mark Oliver.

After an election in our staff constituency, Sophie Scott was re-elected as staff governor.

Previous elections

Email our Trust secretary to obtain information on previous elections.

Benefits of being a member

Being a member will give you an opportunity to play a part, have a say, help to shape and influence the Trust services.

As a member you can expect:

  • regular jargon free communications to keep you informed
  • a range of offers available through Health Service Discounts
  • opportunities to participate in surveys consultations and to influence Trust plans
  • an opportunity to stand for election to the Council of Governors and to vote for somebody to represent you on the council.

Meet the Council of Governors

Sarah Barker, East Constituency Governor

Sarah describes herself as having quite a colourful life to date. She was paralysed from the neck down in 1986, when it was believed she could never amount to much.

Sarah attended a mainstream school and studied for a BSc Hons in Health and Social Care. She has travelled to America and around Europe, among other things. Now she is a paint-by-mouth artist but also runs a community interest company, which is a creative hub and aims to be as inclusive as possible. She loves spending time with her family and husband, and generally living life and helping others do the same.

Tia Bilkey, Staff Governor

Tia joined our Trust 2019. Since then, she has held a variety of admin roles, working in our mental health and digital services. She is about to take on a contracts manager role.

Tia is completing a Chartered Management Degree Apprenticeship with the Trust. This sparked her interest in quality improvement and strategy development. She is passionate about how to improve productivity. She hopes to advocate for this as a staff governor.

Faye Emery, Appointed Governor: Cornwall Council

Councillor Faye Emery

Faye Emery is one of our appointed governors. She joined us as a governor in July 2025 to represent Cornwall Council. Her appointment follows the local elections in May 2025.

Faye is the Cornwall Councillor for Stratton, Kilkhampton and Morwenstow. She has an interest in health services in rural and remote areas.

Faye also runs a small business. Earlier in her career, she worked in higher education.

Paul Ford, East Constituency Governor

Paul is a retired company director with a background in the security industry. He has lived in Cornwall with his wife for 12 years. Paul is deeply involved in the community. He chairs the Launceston Medical Centre's Patient Participation Group and the patient participation umbrella group for East Cornwall. Paul also volunteers as a speaker with Cornwall Air Ambulance.

The NHS's 10-year Plan, which aims, amongst other things, to bring care back into the community. As a Governor, Paul sees one of his duties as ensuring that patients' voices are heard in this new approach to providing health care. 

Rae Hall, Appointed Governor: Volunteer Cornwall

Rae joined Volunteer Cornwall as chief executive officer in July 2025.

She was self-employed and has worked in the NHS in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly since 2000.

Rae has worked with general practices, community health providers, and the voluntary sector.

Until recently she was the vice chair of Volunteer Cornwall.

Her interest and experience are in building community resilience. She believes services should promote wellbeing, based on what matters to the individual.

Rae is Cornish and lives in Truro with her husband and family. She loves the outdoors, good food and being creative: writing, crafts, and music.

Lauren Hobbs, East Constituency Governor

A short bio for Lauren will be published at a future date.

Sam Huczmann, Staff Constituency Governor

Sam joined the NHS as an emergency care assistant for East Midlands Ambulance Service and later qualified as a paramedic. He is now a trained advanced clinical practitioner, with experience as a clinical leader and advanced clinical trainer.

Sam moved to the Trust in 2023. First with virtual wards and now as a lead with the team on the Isles of Scilly. He has been a key part of the work to deliver the islands' integrated health and social care facility. This led to Sam being awarded the coveted Churchill Fellowship. He is keen to share this frontline clinical knowledge with his fellow Governors.

 

Jane Johnson MBE, West Constituency Governor

Jane Johnson

Jane is the chief executive of disAbility Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, a user-led charity championing equality, inclusion, and independent living for people with long term health conditions or a disability. Working with partners, she co-designed the Cornwall Disability Alliance in 2021 and now serves as its co-chair.

For over 25 years, Jane has advocated for the rights and wellbeing of disabled people, their carers, and families. She is passionate about creating a Cornwall where everyone feels supported, included, and able to live well in their own homes and communities. In recognition of her service, Jane was awarded an MBE in the 2021 Queen's Birthday Honours.

Richard Laugharne, Staff Governor

Richard Laugharne

Richard is a semi-retired or emeritus consultant psychiatrist. He is also our head of research. His career in general adult psychiatry spans 19 years. During that time, he has authored several research papers. He has also been involved in award-winning projects.

Richard believes services should be evidence-based. He campaigns for more research. This includes leading a research study to help people with an intellectual disability who find it hard to poo. He also has a keen interest in the use of technology to support those with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Richard believes we should be realistic and honest about what we can achieve while giving people hope.

Mark Oliver, Other Constituency Governor

Mark Oliver

Mark has worked with NHS and social care services for around 30 years, mostly within the community mental health teams and on psychiatric wards.

He previously worked within the Ministry of Defence on the sports grounds, providing support for the services.

Mark lived in Torpoint and Saltash for many years before moving to Plymouth.

Mark supports the Trussell Trust as a signatory for food e-vouchers. He is a volunteer at Liskeard Community Hospital.

 

John Peacock, Appointed Governor, Council of the Isles of Scilly

John is one of the pioneers behind a cloud-based technology which helps small boat businesses comply with various marine safety management system regulations. A resident of the Isles of Scilly, he also runs his own passenger boat business ferrying people around the islands.

John is an appointed governor who represents one of our key partners: the Council of the Isles of Scilly. He was elected in May 2023 and became a governor in November of the same year.

When he is not working, John is interested in the natural environment and photography.

Penny Phillips, West Constituency Governor

Penny Phillips

Penny joined the Trust as a Governor in 2022. Her goal is to help us improve access, experiences, and outcomes for everyone. She is a member of our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Committee.

Penny is a lived experience influencer for the National Suicide Prevention Alliance and belongs to the Samaritans lived experience strategy group.

Penny is a patient safety partner with the National Patient Safety Team. She is also a member of the NHS England Older People's Sounding Board. In addition, Penny is part of her local GP patient participation group and integrated care forum. She became our Lead Governor in March 2026.

Alison Shaw, East Constituency Governor

Alison Shaw

Alison is newly retired and is settling back into life in Cornwall. She is passionate about giving something back to the health community who she describes as having "energised her over the years".

She has close ties with the Trust, having previously served as a Governor from 2019 to 2021. In her first appointment she represented our Other Constituency.

Alison is looking forward to once again being part of our team of Governors. She is looking forward to the challenge and education the role gives her. In return, Alison brings an educational and pastoral care perspective to the role.

Hannah Snelling, East Constituency Governor

Hannah Snelling

After struggling with an eating disorder and leaving school with no GCSEs, Hannah joined the Trust as a volunteer. Her first role was a mealtime assistant at St Austell Community Hospital. Hannah volunteered to keep visiting the wards during the pandemic, helping patients have video calls with loved ones. She remains a volunteer in the café.

Hannah is now a peer support worker with our Eating Disorders Service and in her second term as a Trust governor. Despite holding a foundation degree and degree, Hannah is most proud of being able to help and support patients.

Tom Sugg, Appointed Governor for Truro and Penwith College

Tom Sugg

Tom Sugg is one of our appointed governors. He is the academic and quality lead at the University Centre Truro and Penwith. The centre is part of Truro and Penwith College. 

Tom leads the faculty of nursing and allied health. In this role, he oversees the training of degree students. These are Foundation Degree Science (FdSc) Nursing Associate; Bachelor of Science with Honours (BSc (Hons)) Adult Nursing; BSc (Hons) Mental Health Nursing; BSc (Hons) Operating Department Practitioners. This is in collaboration with the University of Greenwich.

Tom's work is focussed on ensuring high-quality, research-informed teaching that prepares students for successful careers in health care. He became a governor to contribute to workforce development, training, and widening participation. Tom aims to support the Trust's ambition to grow and sustain the future nursing and allied health workforce.

Nigel Walker, West Constituency Governor

Nigel Walker Governor

Nigel joined us as a governor in 2018, having previously been the executive member for adult care at Cornwall Council.

He champions a just culture where everyone can speak up. Encouraging staff to speak up, knowing they will be heard without fear. Leaders cannot see everything or be everywhere.

Nigel is a volunteer adviser to both disAbility Cornwall and Isles of Scilly, and Cornwall People First, speaking up for people who are vulnerable and their families.

He is a member of his GP surgery's patient participation group. He is a Trustee of Music for Good and was a founder Trustee of the charity Trelya, from which he has recently retired.

Helen Woods, Staff Governor

Helen Woods

Helen has worked her entire professional career in the NHS. She has been a chief pharmacist since 2003, and since 2012 with the Trust.

Through her role as chief pharmacist, Helen has developed a deep understanding of the services the trust provides. Her role sees her work with clinical and non-clinical staff and with colleagues from all professions. She is passionate about helping all staff to deliver the best possible patient care.

Helen became a staff governor because she wants to ensure we hear the voice of staff at all levels of the Trust. She's also keen to ensure we have robust assurance and challenge on how we work.

West Constituency vacancies

We currently have 2 vacancies for Governors to represent the West Constituency area. We plan to hold these vacancies until our next round of Governor elections. These will take place in late 2026 and early 2027.

Anyone who is a member of the West Constituency area can put themselves forward as a Governor.