Board members
This page lists executive and non-executive members of The Board.
Executive Chair:
Dame Julie Mellor DBE, Ombudsman
Executive members:
Helen Hughes, Chief Operating Officer
Sacha Deshmukh, Interim Director of External Affairs
Gwen Harrison, Interim Director of Operations
Gavin McBurnie, Interim Director of Operations (Business Development)
Angela Paradise, Interim Divisional Corporate Resources Director
Non-executive members:
Peter Freedman
Peter Freedman has over 25 years experience working with the world’s leading companies in the consumer goods, retail and healthcare industries, on a wide range of strategy, organisation and operational issues. He led McKinsey’s Europe, Middle East and Africa consumer goods practice for over 10 years. He is a non-executive director of the Whittington Health NHS Trust.
Peter was appointed from September 2012 following open competition.
Sharmila Nebhrajani
Sharmila has enjoyed a varied career, spanning media, technology and health including the BBC and NHS Sussex. She was deputy chair of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority and took a world fellowship at Yale University in 2007 where she lectured on media policy and medical ethics. She is Chief Executive of the Association of Medical Research Charities which represents the 125 major medical research charities in the UK. She is currently a Non-Executive Board Member of the Charity Commission, the General Council of the University of Sussex, the Pension Protection Fund and the Food Standards Agency.
Sharmila was appointed from January 2013 following open competition.
Sir Jon Shortridge KCB
Sir Jon is an experienced public servant and leader. He is Chair of Community Service Volunteers, a non-executive Director of the UK Statistics Authority and Chair of the Audit Panel of Cardiff County Council. Most recently, he was interim Permanent Secretary at the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills where he led the merger with the Department for Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform. Prior to this he was Permanent Secretary in Wales between 1999 and 2008.
The Audit Committee Chair's appointment, which was made following an open recruitment process, is for a three year term which may be renewed for a single further term.
Sir Jon was appointed from 1 April 2010 following open competition.
Helen Walley
Helen Walley trained as a nurse and has had a long career in the NHS in both primary care and hospitals. She was Chief Executive at the Mayday Hospital for three years and before that she ran Wandsworth PCT. She now works as a consultant and is Chair of the Governors at Croydon College.
Helen was appointed from September 2012 following open competition.
Dr Tony Wright
Tony Wright was elected to Parliament in 1992 and served as MP for Cannock Chase until he stood down when Parliament was dissolved in April 2010.
He was appointed Chair of the Public Administration Select Committee in 1999 and became Chair of the Select Committee on Reform of the House of Commons in 2009. He is a Council member for UCL’s Constitution Unit, which researches constitutional reform in the UK.
Tony Wright was appointed from 1 June 2010. He was invited to join the Board by the Ombudsman.
