Governors and members

Andy is a former mental health nurse and Trust employee.

He is the third generation of his family to work as a nurse for the Trust or its predecessors. During his 28-year nursing career, he worked as a nurse, ward, and unit manager before becoming a lead nurse. When we became a foundation Trust Andy was one of our first staff governors.

In his last role with the Trust, Andy led the introduction of electronic patient records. He later moved to work in an acute trust and the private sector.

Throughout his career, Andy has been a champion for patients, carers, and high quality care. He wants to help ensure we hear and listen to patients, drawing on his experiences as a nurse, patient and carer.

Ian is chief executive of the charity, Volunteer Cornwall.

Ian and the team at Volunteer Cornwall work to help people become active and self-reliant citizens. This includes training and recruiting volunteers. The charity also supports the most vulnerable members of our community. They work with us and other organisations to develop and deliver public services.

Ian works with us to ensure we engage people in an equal and pro-active manner to coproduce the solutions we need for a resilient future.

Richard is an Emeritus (semi-retired) consultant psychiatrist and our head of research. He worked for 19 years as a consultant in general adult psychiatry, before moving to work with patients with intellectual disabilities.

During his NHS career he has authored several research papers and contributed to award winning initiatives. He is passionate about research and the difference it makes to peoples’ lives.

Richard is working on research projects to help treat constipation in people with intellectual disabilities. His other research interest is the use of digital tools to help people with post-traumatic stress disorder.

He stood on the following mandate:

• to be honest and realistic about what services can deliver
• services need to be based on research evidence
• we need to give our patients and staff hope

Information to follow.

Information to follow.

Stephanie has been a Staff Governor since 2017, after joining the Trust in 2014. Since becoming a Governor, she has taken on the extra role of Lead Governor.

She is passionate about the health and wellbeing of her colleagues. This is something she also supports in her role as fundraising manager. To enable her to support her colleagues and help them to reach their full potential she has trained as a transformational coach. She is also a mental health first aider.

Sophie is our coaching and talent management lead. She’s been employed by both NHS providers during her career.

She enjoys working alongside operational colleagues; often joining inpatient or community teams on shift. This approach gives her insight into the experiences and challenges faced by her colleagues.

Through her work Sophie is supporting the development of a compassionate and just culture.

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 has been appointed for a second term as a Governor. She first joined us in 2021.

Having struggled with an eating disorder, Hannah left school with no GCSEs. Since joining us as a volunteer in 2020, Hannah has gained a foundation degree in health and nutrition and a degree in human and behavioural sciences.

She is a volunteer peer support worker with our Eating Disorders Service. Working alongside psychologists and other members of the team, Hannah uses her experience to help others. Hannah has also joined our Flexi Team, which has allowed her to experience work in different areas of the Trust.

Nigel joined us as a Governor in 2018. He is an advocate of a just culture where everyone is able to speak up without fear.

He has previously been the Cornwall Council executive member for adult care. Nigel is a volunteer advisor to Disability Cornwall and Cornwall People First. His role as volunteer advisor enables him to advocate for vulnerable people and their families.

Nigel is a member of his GP surgery’s patient participation group and a Trustee of Trelya and Music for Good. He is also a volunteer advisor to Disability Cornwall and Cornwall People First.

Helen has worked her entire professional career in the NHS. She has spent 20 years as a chief pharmacist, the last 11 with us here in Cornwall.

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

Helen became a 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.