Eighteen governors have been elected to represent their community’s views on local healthcare services and shape the future of Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust.
The newly elected governors will join the Council of Governors, subject to necessary appointment checks, and represent the public, patients and carers from different geographical areas, and staff from different directorates.
Thank you to all our candidates! You can view the newly elected governors and what they told us in their election statements below. You can contact your governor by emailing contactyourgovernor@oxfordhealth.nhs.uk.
Service users – Oxfordshire
Jonathan Cole
For the last 40 years, I have also been an intermittent user of mental health services. As a teenager, I attended the Highfield Adolescent Unit at the Warneford Hospital. In 1996, I was sectioned at the John Radcliffe Emergency Department and in 2000 I was detained at the Warneford Hospital. In my opinion, there is great scope for making mental healthcare services in Oxfordshire more respectful of patient autonomy and dignity. I am a Chartered Engineer and, as a volunteer at MIND, have worked closely with people with serious and chronic mental health problems. I hope to be a voice for people with enduring mental ill-health and other disabilities whose healthcare needs are too often marginalised.”
Gillian Evans

Benjamin McCay

I am on the co-production board at Oxfordshire county council and part of I am the leading together Co production group at Oxford Health. I think that when staff work with patients, we get better services for everyone.
I have been campaigning, with other organisations for people with a learning disability to be put in priority six for the COVID vaccine. This have been successful nationally and people with learning disabilities have started to have the vaccine.
I like the phrase nothing about us without us. I think it is important that patients’ voices are heard at every stage of service changes from initial plans to a new service opening.
I want to stand as a governor at Oxford Health so that people with a learning disability are represented, which has not happened before. I hope to make becoming a governor more accessible for people with any disability in the future.”
Karen Squibb-Williams

As a longstanding and active health service user (and a very long term patient!) I would like to put my advocacy skills to good use for other Oxfordshire patients who may benefit from them.
My working life has been predominately spent in the legal profession assisting, supporting and advocating on behalf of individuals who either are vulnerable or find it difficult to present information about their vulnerability. I profoundly believe in equality of opportunity and respect for all.”
Service users – Buckinghamshire and other counties
This constituency was uncontested, and the candidates were elected unopposed.
Julien FitzGerald

Jacky McKenna

Claire Sessions

Carers
Nyarai Humba

My B.A. Social Science (Hons) Degree gave me access to many subjects – Psychology, Sociology, Social Policy, Town Planning, History, Race and Gender, Economics and Political Economy.
I have an MSc in Research Methodologies and I can read, critique, and design research in social matters like Health and Education. My specialist subject is Institutional Racism in Education.
Since 1995 when I moved to Oxford to study at Oxford University, I have worked with and supported community groups. I was a Committee member of East Oxford Community Centre and Oxford Development Centre for 13 years. I also worked for the Oxford Befriending Network supporting people in the community who have been diagnosed with terminal illnesses. I trained volunteers and supported both volunteers and service users. I am looking forward to learning from other members of the governing body and to making new friends.”
Allan Johnson

I have worked in healthcare, outside Oxfordshire and in the public and private sector for over 20 years and I am passionate about the benefits of our NHS. I am very proud of the work that Oxford Health do, but I am a critical supporter. For the NHS to perform at its best I believe it needs to be challenged, appropriately and firmly.
In the past three years I have represented your governors as an observer on the Trust Board, confronted issues of patient experience and highlighted poor information governance. Supporting our health system means not just providing overt support but also representing the views of patients and service users and changing elements of the system that we feel could be delivered more effectively.
I believe elected Governors should act as a voice for the patients and carers using the trust, that means a focus on outcomes and results balancing too much emphasis on targets and budgets.”
Public: Oxfordshire
Melissa Clements

With a broad and varied background, plus some excellent business experience, I would hope to bring some great skills to Oxford Health. I hope you will agree my grounding in finance, communications, governance and controls should be great skills to add value to the Trust. I am always looking at ways to improve processes as I have an analytical approach. I am passionate about making a difference, and really enthusiastic to be joining the NHS on my first student nursing placement this month.”
Public: Buckinghamshire
Anna Gardner

Christiana Kolade

I would like to participate in supporting women that have mental health challenges through pregnancy, labour and postnatal periods.
I would like to participate in other programmes that can promote mental health awareness and support as required.
I am available and open to learning new things that will improve the standard of care.”
Tabitha Wishlade

Public: Rest of England & Wales
Tendai Nyoni

“I believe in transforming medicine which connect and cure as the global authority in the care of serious or complex disease. I will ensure the needs of the patients remain the focus and advocate for members and patients. I will ensure the Trust provide the best care, treating patients and family members with sensitivity and empathy. It is my great desire to add value to such an amazing health institution which provide a range of specialist health services that include forensic mental health and eating disorder services across a wider geographic area.”
Staff
Oxfordshire, BaNES, Swindon & Wiltshire (BSW) Mental Health Services
Ekenna Hutchinson

My background is mental health nursing and since January 2021 I have been writing and reflecting on how as leaders we can connect more intentionally while people are in lockdown and moving forward. I have been promoted recently to a role totally different to my staff nurse role. I aim to overcome challenges, share my experience and empower others by using my experience.”
Buckinghamshire Mental Health Services
Giles Loch

I believe in high quality care of patients and staff welfare. I want to have a more joined up care and treatment for patients and staff across the Trust.
Within this I want to ensure the patients within mental health in Bucks get the same standard of mental and physical health care as is available within other areas for us to be one Trust. However, currently being in the middle of a pandemic I feel I want to be pushing staff protection and having better quality PPE available to us as a Trust.
I want to work with the executive leadership team to facilitate change within the Trust for better for all concerned and for staff to feel they have been listened to, and as working on front line, I feel I would be best placed to help to do this.”
Corporate Services
Charlotte Forder

I am passionate about continuous improvement in patient care, and recently took part in the leading improvement program with the Healthcare Improvement Centre. Prior to joining the Trust I trained and worked as an ecologist, before working for 10 years with Baxter Healthcare.
As a balance to my work I volunteer with the mental health charity Restore, visiting patients on adult acute wards to provide information about opportunities available following discharge. When younger I experienced various episodes of psychosis that resulted in inpatient and outpatient mental health care; this lived experience drives my interest in healthcare and strengthens my commitment to support staff with improvement. As such I feel I could bring a variety of understanding and experience to the governor role.”
Specialised Services
Perry Ssenyonga

Published: 25 May 2021