Our Board and Governors

Graham Russell is Chair of the Trust. Prior to becoming Chair, Graham was Vice Chair having been appointed as a Non-Executive Director in 2016. Graham is also Chair of Brunelcare which is a charity based in Bristol providing person-centred housing, care and support. He was formerly Chair of Elim Housing Association and Chair of Second Step, a mental health charity.

Prior to chairing Second Step and Elim Housing, Graham spent 10 years as an expert advisor to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), four years as executive director at the Commission for Rural Communities and a decade in a number of senior roles at Business in the Community, one of The Prince’s Charities.

Douglas started as Chief Executive on 17 April 2023. Prior to joining our Trust, Douglas was Managing Director of Wiltshire Health and Care, which delivers adult community health and learning disability services in Wiltshire, a role he held since its establishment in July 2016.  He joined the NHS in 2006, with Associate Director and Director roles in South Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust, the South West Strategic Health Authority and NHS England before being appointed as Director of Community Services at Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in 2014, which led to him establishing Wiltshire Health and Care as an NHS partnership. 

Prior to his time in the NHS, he was a civil servant, having being accepted into the Civil Service Fast Stream in 1998.  His government roles included homelessness policy, rural policy, the Scottish Cabinet secretariat and the reform and transformation of the prosecution service in Scotland.  His first career was as a sound engineer, working for EMI at Abbey Road Studios.

Sandra became the Director of Finance for Gloucestershire Health and Care NHS Foundation Trust following the merger between 2gether NHS Foundation Trust and Gloucestershire Care Services NHS Trust.  Sandra was the Senior Responsible Officer (SRO) and lead executive for the successful merger and integration. Sandra became joint Director of Finance for 2gether and Gloucestershire Care Services in June 2019, having previously been Director of Finance for Gloucestershire Care Services. Her responsibilities include strategy and business development, planning, financial management and contract management as well as leadership of the finance services, procurement, performance, IT functions and the Trust’s Senior Information Risk Owner (SIRO).

Sandra was previously Executive Director of Resources at Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust, where she led on a wide portfolio of corporate services including finance, estates, ICT and business development. A qualified accountant, Sandra began her accountancy career with the Bradford and Northern Housing Association. She joined the NHS in 1993 and has held high profile roles in finance and procurement within health authorities, mental health trusts, and the NHS Information Authority.

Rosanna lives in Gloucestershire and joins us from the Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire Integrated Care System (ICS) where she was a Programme Director, leading an ICS-wide transformation programme, focused on improving older people’s care.

The programme is working in partnership with health and social care organisations and the VCSE sector, to redesign acute and community models of care, with an aim of improving system flow and maximising the opportunity for older people to retain their independence, through Homefirst integrated options. Prior to that, Rosanna was Deputy Chief Operating Officer at North Bristol Trust for eight years, across elective and emergency portfolios, having originally joined the NHS as a Graduate Management Trainee. Outside her NHS roles, Rosanna is passionate about engaging and harnessing the power of communities to support families and young people in need; and is chair of Baby Bank Network in Bristol, as well as a board member of the National Baby Bank Alliance.

Neil joins us from his previous role of Director of HR Transformation, leading on the HR integration of Birmingham Children’s and Birmingham Women’s NHS Foundation Trusts. Prior to this, Neil worked at Birmingham Women’s NHS Foundation Trust, most recently as Chief Operating Officer. In this role, he successfully delivered local and national performance and access targets, developed and implemented a number of service improvements and people strategies, as well as implementing business continuity management and emergency planning systems. Before this, he was Executive Director of Workforce & Organisational Development. From 2004, Neil worked for Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust as Assistant HR Director and Acting Director of HR & Organisational Development. Neil has also worked in other HR roles for NHS trusts covering acute, mental health, learning disabilities and community services. A Chartered Fellow of the CIPD, Neil was the winner of the Health Education England West Midlands’ “Inspirational Leader of the Year” award in 2015 and was shortlisted as a national finalist in 2016.

Nicola has 23 years of experience as a registered mental health nurse and joined the Trust from her previous role as Health and Care Professional Director within Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board.

She has previously been a Bank Mental Health Inspector for the Care Quality Commission and a Lay Advisory Panel Member (voluntary) with the College of Optometrists. Prior to this she was Clinical Director, BANES Swindon & Wiltshire Division, within Avon & Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust. Before this Nicola worked in a range of nursing, senior nursing and management roles in mental health and community organisations across the NHS.

Amjad completed his undergraduate medical training in 1995 and subsequently worked in Primary Care and General Medicine before specialising in Psychiatry. He joined the Trust in August 2002 and completed his basic and specialist training locally in Gloucestershire in the Severn Deanery. He is on the GMC Specialist Register with accreditation in General Adult Psychiatry and an endorsement in Rehabilitation Psychiatry. His first appointment as Consultant was with the Cheltenham Crisis and Home Treatment Team from January 2010 to July 2013. In August 2013 he joined the Gloucester and Forest of Dean Assertive Outreach Team as Consultant. His previous additional roles include Inpatient Medical Lead (March 2010 to August 2013), Postgraduate Tutor (November 2010 to August 2013) and Director of Medical Education (August 2013 to December 2017). He was an elected and later a co-opted member of South West Division of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He is a member of the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management and represented the South West Division in the Leadership and Management Committee of the Royal College of Psychiatrists. He was appointed as Medical Director in 2gether NHS Foundation Trust in December 2017 and Joint Medical Director 2gether NHS Foundation Trust and Gloucestershire Care Services in February 2019. He is also the Responsible Officer and Caldicott Guardian in the Trust.

Our Non Executive Directors

Sumita was appointed to the Board in January 2019. Sumita is a commercial Employment lawyer by background. She is also a Non-Executive Director on Royal United Hospitals in Bath.

As well as experience in the commercial sector, Sumita has a breadth of experience in the public sector and has worked across the system; in the Local Authority as a Social Care Commissioner, in the Police leading the equalities and participation agenda and in the NHS as a senior leader in mental, community and acute health.

She is also an active volunteer, as founding Chair of the Bristol Mayoral Race Equality Commission and Bristol Women’s commission. Also in her capacity as a wellbeing practitioner, she offers free accessible wellbeing classes and gives regular broadcasts on BBC radio on health and wellbeing.

Sumita is passionate about being part of the solution to the two major issues of our time: social inequality and environmental destruction. She is the Board Champion for both these issues and she believes that a well-equipped and empowered workforce is the key to any transformation.

Sumita is Chair of the Charitable Funds Committee and Vice-Chair of the Resources Committee. She is also on the Quality Committee.

Stephen has been a GP in Gloucestershire for the last 32 years, first with the Uley practice and then with the Cam and Uley Family Practice following a merger of two surgeries in 2013.

He chaired the Stroud and Berkeley Vale Primary Care Group, and has served as Treasurer on the Gloucestershire Local Medical Committee, working in liaison with the clinical commissioning group on specific projects.

A former graduate of Bristol University, Stephen had junior doctor roles in Cheltenham, Exeter, Bristol, Weston-super-Mare, Milton Keynes and Aylesbury, before his GP training in Buckingham.

He retired from general practice in October 2019. Outside of work he is an active member of Cotswold Edge Golf Club. Stephen has two dogs and enjoys walking them in the wooded Cotswold countryside.

Jan Marriott is a nurse who has a degree in social policy as well as an MBA. Jan has previously been Director of Nursing in the NHS in Worcestershire and West Gloucestershire as well as with a national independent sector care organisation. She also has experience as a Director of Clinical Change in the Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust. Jan loves nursing and cares deeply about the provision of high quality, personalised care and the empowerment of colleagues.

Jan has worked in Gloucestershire since 2002 and for some years has been Co-Chair of the Gloucestershire Learning Disability and the Physical Disability and Sensory Impairment Partnership Boards as well as being the Independent Chair of the Gloucestershire Mental Health and Wellbeing Partnership Board. The rationale for the Boards is that by working together with partners, other agencies and people with lived experience we can contribute more and improve the lives of the people of Gloucestershire.  Jan is very committed to co-production and is an advocate for place-based approaches.

Nicola is also Chair of Council at the University of Gloucestershire. There she is an advocate for education as a means of transforming people’s lives so that they can make the world a better place, and for the civic role the University plays in our community.

She also serves as a Trustee of the Gloucestershire Counselling Service, a charity dedicated to improving mental health in the county. She is also Senior Independent Director of Connexus Housing, a social landlord based in Shropshire and Herefordshire.

In the private sector, Nicola chairs the Reference Committee for the Premier Miton UK Responsible Investment Fund, with a remit to advise on the fund’s investment policy and scrutinise investment decisions from the perspective of sustainability and ethics.

Previously, Nicola worked in the financial services sector as a global change lead. She also spent several years working as a freelance management consultant majoring in complex, strategic change across different sectors, both in the UK and internationally.

Nicola has lived in Gloucestershire for 20 years with her husband, two sons, two cats and a dog.

Bilal is an FCCA qualified accountant who is also a Non-Executive Director of Bristol Energy Cooperative, with prior non-executive experience with the local NHS acute trust, as well as broader experience through private sector pensions related chair and trustee roles.  

Bilal started his working life in high street banking, before graduating as a mature student, thereafter, professionally qualifying whilst working for Chubb Electronic Security during the 1990s.  Subsequently, the majority of Bilal’s career has been spent in senior finance roles working for large national and multi-national outsourcing companies, spanning amongst others rail, highways, waste, energy (including renewables), EV charging and property technology offerings, servicing both the public and private sectors, and culminated in his last role, prior to retirement in June 2023, as Divisional Finance Director with Equans UK & Ireland. 

Bilal’s personal interest in the NHS stems, in part, from his children, three of whom have pursued careers in healthcare, two being doctors, the third being an optometrist; with all three now working for the NHS.

Jason is a director at Ginkgo Bioworks, a US-based company seeking to make biology easier to engineer. He is also a non-executive director of the Royal Agricultural University, and sits on both the Audit and Risk Committee and the Remuneration Committee there. Before joining Ginkgo, Jason worked as a senior civil servant, including as both director of products and director for community services at the UK Health Security Agency (formerly NHS Test & Trace) during the Covid-19 pandemic, and as chief digital, data and technology officer at Barnardo’s. 

Jason has strong interests in ensuring public services are designed around the needs of people and communities, in improving equity of access to health and care, and in helping Government put emerging technology to use in tackling the greatest challenges of our age.

Vicci Livingstone-Thompson is the Chief Executive Officer of Inclusion Gloucestershire, a user-led organisation working to further inclusion and champion the voice of people facing disabling barriers across Gloucestershire and beyond. Vicci has career history in senior leadership within the charity disability sector in Gloucestershire, and is passionate about empowering people to play the leading role in managing their health and wellbeing and advocating for community-based preventative care and support.

In 2022, Vicci was named one of the 100 most influential disabled people in the UK on the Shaw Trust’s Power 100 List, and she is also a Trustee of Active Impact, an organisation breaking down barriers to inclusion for disabled children and young people.

Vicci said: “As a lifelong Gloucestershire resident and disabled person, the mission and values of the Trust strongly resonate with me and I am thrilled to be joining the Board with a view to representing the voice of Gloucestershire communities, supporting more partnership working with the Voluntary and Community Sector and tackling health inequalities”.

Dr Cathia Jenainati is Professor of Gender and Leadership, and the Head of the School of Business, Computing and Social Sciences at the University of Gloucestershire.

Prior to her appointment at UoG, Cathia was the Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at the Lebanese American University (2019-2023) and worked across the US and the Middle East.

She established programmes in Liberal Education and oversaw a large number of programmes ranging from Nutrition, Physics, Biology, Chemistry and Mathematics to Performing Arts, Political Sciences, History and Sociology.

From 2003-2019 Cathia was at the University of Warwick where she occupied various roles, culminating in the Foundation of the School for Cross-Faculty studies in 2015 where she was appointed as Founding Head of School. Cathia founded the Global Sustainable Development unit at UoW and oversaw the establishment of the Research Institute for GSD. She also founded the Liberal Arts program which is predicated on the pillars of Social Justice, Gender Equity and Sustainability.

During her career, she has set up education programmes in Australia, the USA, Europe and the Middle East. Cathia holds a BSc Biology, BA Literature, MA Comparative Literature and PhD Comparative Literature and a PGCE. She is a certified coach who is committed to supporting individuals from under-represented communities during their leadership journey.