Strengthening GMMH’s leadership team and preparing for the next phase of our improvement journey
Dear Colleagues and Partners,
I wanted to update you on the steps I am taking to strengthen GMMH’s leadership team and prepare for the next phase of our improvement journey.
In my previous update, I shared the initial feedback from the Care Quality Commission’s Well-Led assessment. That feedback recognised progress in recent years but was clear about the significant work still required to ensure we consistently provide the high-quality services that our service users, carers and communities deserve. We remain focused on responding openly and at pace, while continuing to improve the quality and consistency of care for our service users, their families and carers.
Strong leadership will be central to that work. I am therefore pleased to confirm that we have appointed three new executive directors following competitive recruitment processes. While we are not yet able to share their names, all three leaders bring an excellent track record and substantial experience in mental health services. Together, they will add valuable expertise and capacity to our executive leadership team.
The roles we have appointed to over the last couple of weeks include:
- Deputy Chief Executive and Chief Operating Officer , a clinician who will lead the operational delivery of services across the Trust, ensuring excellence in quality, safety, performance and financial sustainability, while helping to drive large-scale transformation and innovation.
- Chief Performance Improvement and Transformation Officer which is a newly created Board-level role with responsibility for bringing together performance, improvement and transformation into a single, integrated portfolio. The Director is also a clinician who will help create a clear line of sight from strategy to delivery, ensuring that improvement becomes the Trust’s operating model and that priorities translate into measurable outcomes for patients, carers, colleagues and our communities.
- Director of Corporate Affairs , who will provide strategic leadership across Corporate Governance, Risk Management, Communications and Board Secretariat services. They will ensure the Trust meets its statutory, regulatory and legal obligations while enabling effective, transparent and confident decision-making at Board and Executive level.
These appointments are an important part of strengthening leadership across the Trust and ensuring we become a more clinically led organisation. The new directors will help us sharpen our focus on delivery and ensure that decisions are informed by a deep understanding of mental health care and the experiences of service users, carers and colleagues. The new appointments will support the Board in the wider cultural improvement work due to start imminently as we work with colleagues across the Trust in developing a culture were colleagues feel they belong and can thrive.
I will announce their names and provide more information about their roles as soon as the necessary processes have been completed, but for now the interim arrangements are:
- Interim Chief Operating Officer: Carmain Gibson-Holmes
- Interim Chief Nurse: Rebekah Roshan
- Interim Director of Corporate Affairs: Joanne Sandham
- Interim Chief People Officer – Deborah Cox
Interviews for the Chief People Officer role take place in early November. This work forms part of a wider programme to strengthen the organisation and set a clear direction for the future. Our Board will consider the next stage of these plans at its meeting on 12 November. Following that meeting, I expect to share further announcements about our future plans and the continued development of our clinical leadership, cultural reset and improvement journey.
There is much to do and I am encouraged by the progress already under way. I have seen a strong commitment across GMMH to learning and improving, supported by colleagues who continue to provide care every day in often demanding circumstances. We will build on that commitment as we take the next steps in delivering our vision of Great places for care and great places to work.
I will continue to keep you informed as this work develops. Your support and partnership remain important to me and I look forward to sharing more with you after the Board meeting.
Kind regards,
Chris Oliver
Chief Executive
