Public governors

Each governor seeks to represent views of patients and Trust members, but particularly in their constituencies, which include:

• Cheltenham Borough Council
• Cotswold District Council
• Forest of Dean District Council
• Gloucester City Council
• Out of County
• Stroud District Council
• Tewkesbury Borough Council

Cheltenham Borough Council

Peter Mitchener (elected 2022)

Having lived in Cheltenham for 31 years Peter is passionate about using his skills and experience to improve the lives and health of Gloucestershire’s population as evidenced by his current voluntary roles.

He is a qualified leader in running fitness and Chair of Almost Athletes running club, a member of the core team which organises Cheltenham parkrun, a driver supporting charity shops of National Star, Trustee for Crossroads Care Gloucestershire, community involvement adviser for East Gloucestershire multi-sports Club, welcome team member at Cheltenham Festivals and a school governor at Balcarras for many years where he's currently Vice Chair and Operations Committee Chair, having previously been Finance Chair. Peter was the lead marshal supporting the COVID vaccination rollout at the Fire station.

Peter relishes being a trusted critical friend who will encourage, challenge and provide an independent opinion. He has a huge community network to access to contribute to the future direction of the Trust and the strategies needed to get there.

He brings the relevant skills from his previous career as an Actuary having performed governance, proposition, financial, marketing, supplier management and business change roles.

Mike Ellis (elected 2021)

Mike retired from General Practice at the end of 2018, having been a partner at Royal Crescent Surgery from 1981 to 2002, and then a partner at Berkeley Place Surgery until 2016, after which he worked as a locum GP in Cheltenham. He first came to Cheltenham in 1977 to train in Anaesthetics at the General Hospital and was fortunate to be able to work as a part-time anesthetist locally from 1982 to 1999. He responded to the call to help in the Covid pandemic, and between April 2020 and May 2021 he worked for the Covid Clinical Assessment Service supporting NHS111.

Mike was born in Oxford, into a medical family. He trained at The London Hospital (now Royal London & Barts). He and his wife ( a chartered physiotherapist) have lived in the Leckhampton area for nearly 40years.

Throughout his career, he sought to ensure that patients received the best possible care. Every patient is an individual who has specific personal needs and expectations. Balancing those specific needs against the constraints of an NHS with limited funds requires experience in treating patients and knowledge of the challenge of working for the NHS. Mike feels that his experience of patient needs in primary care and the interface between the community and secondary care will enable him to support the Trust as it recovers from its “Long-Covid” and beyond.

Mike believes he has the enthusiasm, experience and skills to fulfill the responsibilities of a hospital governor, and to contribute towards ensuring Gloucestershire Hospitals NHSFT delivers a service that makes us all feel safe, expertly cared for and proud.

Cotswold District Council

Bryony Armstrong (elected 2023)

Representing the Cotswold district on the Council of Governors is a huge honour for Bryony. Bryony has first-hand knowledge and experience of health services, both in Gloucestershire and further afield.

Bryony has chaired the Trust’s Young Influencers meetings and has effectively engaged with young people and others, in order to understand what matters most to them. Bryony’s involvement with the Young Influencers has given her a passion for driving improvement - especially for children & young people’s services - something she continues to pursue.

Bryony will represent Cotswold District and other young people who otherwise may not have an opportunity to speak up. In representing these two groups, she provides a unique and invaluable contribution to the Council.

Douglas Butler (elected 2024)

I have lived in Stratton (Cirencester) for 3 years now. I am a retired teacher and trainer (secondary mathematics, with a specialism in the use of technology in education). My Father was a surgeon at the London Hospital, I have a daughter who is a physio at National Star College Cheltenham, and my daughter-in-law is a GP in Tewkesbury.

I am an active member of the Patients Participation Group in Cirencester (Phoenix Health Group), and I have helped to create the annual wellness event in Cirencester. I would like to become involved with the Cotswold constituency of the Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. I hope to join the debate about the use of education to keep people healthier, and away from the hospitals’ waiting lists.

I bring to this role a keen awareness of the effectiveness of Primary Care through my PPG membership. I have strong IT skills.

Forest of Dean District Council

Susan Mountcastle (elected 2024)

I am interested in becoming one of your governors because I have the time and commitment to bring to the role and the enthusiasm to learn and carry out the required tasks. I have some relevant experience having been employed by Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Integrated Care Board up to February 2023 when I retired from full time work. My role there was PA to the Director of Planned Care and Director of Integrated Care. I was also the admin PA for the COVID 19 committee under the chairmanship of one of our GPs. So, I am used to the jargon used in the NHS and some of the processes.

From 2012 to 2017 I was an elected member of Birmingham City Council and my principal role was Chair of Scrutiny of Health and Social Care so I am used to working with health and social care colleagues and for a period of about 12 months I was the Council’s elected representative on the governing body of UHP Birmingham (Queen Elizabeth) so I am familiar with the processes of a busy governing body; not just the governing body meetings but the monthly visits to hospital departments. My husband, Graham, and I moved to Mitcheldean 18 months ago and have become involved in various community groups. I am a Parish Clerk at Weston under Penyard Parish Council just over the County border in Herefordshire, and I am keen to become more involved in my community.

Gloucester City Council

Fiona Hodder (elected 2022)

Fiona Hodder was born in Bristol trained as a Nurse in Reading, where she lived for many years, before settling in Gloucester in 2015. She has worked in and around health and social care for all her working life.

Fiona started as a cadet nurse, then as a registered nurse, followed by a career in the medical devices industry and is now the owner and registered manager of a domiciliary care business, based in Gloucester. She is married and is also a mother and grandmother.

Fiona is passionate about the delivery of excellent care, whether that is in hospital or the persons’ own home and sees a need for more synergy across the varied points of care delivery, to ensure treatment and care provision is underpinned by offering choice, be person-centred, dignity focussed and offer smooth transition across the continuum of health and care locations. In her various roles over the years Fiona has witnessed many organisational changes across the NHS and feels strongly that those organisations are held accountable to their clients, the taxpayers.

Fiona has a range of skills and experience across health care delivery, including understanding some of the intricacies of NHS procurement, through many years spent working with medical devices and equipment. She has a current understanding of the challenges associated with moving patients on from hospital and a desire to see that the patient experience is as positive as possible.

“I hope that my combined healthcare and business knowledge can be well utilised as a publicgovernor with the Trust and I look forward to becoming involved wherever I may be able to add value.”

Emma Mawby (elected 2024)

Emma’s professional career spans over thirty years, first in industry and then in consultancy, working with major companies across more than twenty-five countries. Her focus is looking at what people want and need locally, and how they make the choices about what is right for them. Then helping organisations understand it, plan it, and deliver it successfully and cost-effectively.

Emma wants to focus on earlier diagnosis in Gloucestershire so that patients can be diagnosed at the earliest possible opportunity. And to ensure that, over time, more services are local to reduce the number of patients who are having to travel out of the county for treatment. Overall, it’s about making sure that more high quality and timely NHS care will become available to more patients.

Emma has seen the extraordinary compassion, care and professionalism of NHS staff over time. That’s why she has volunteered with the NHS over the last seven years at a number of levels - national, Gloucestershire and locally here in Gloucester. Working with everyone from new starters right up to senior NHS leaders.

Emma’s business and volunteering experiences have both taught her that our diverse local needs really do matter. That every patient and carer matters. And that each of our unique histories matters. Because going forward it is all of our experiences together that should shape how the NHS delivers for us here in Gloucester.

Stroud District Council

Pat Eagle (re-elected 2019)

Pat moved to Slimbridge six years ago. Previously Pat has been a Warden of Sheltered Housing and a Publican. Pat has been on a very personal journey with the NHS having been diagnosed with Breast Cancer in 2000 before getting involved in the Peninsula Cancer Network. Her passion is Cancer Services and Research and Clinical Trials although she is interested in all aspects of health care.

Pat's aim is to harness her experience to work with the Trust in providing excellent quality care for everyone.

Deborah Balkwill

Deborah has 14 years’ experience as an executive director of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, 10 years as the chief nurse and, since 2020, as the chief executive of Barnet Hospital. She is also a Trustee of the Royal Hospital for Neuro-disability in Putney. The above roles are in her professional name Deborah Sanders.

Deborah has lived in Painswick since 2006, and her mum lives in Cheltenham. Having high-quality, safe, and sustainable healthcare services locally is important to Deborah, as she knows it is to the community.

Deborah has worked closely with governors as an executive director and understands the value and contribution that a well-functioning Council of Governors brings to the good governance of a Foundation Trust. She understands how important Governors are in ensuring the voice of the community and the trust staff are heard and that their interests are represented. She hopes to ensure these are used in informing the decisions the Trust makes in improving the care and experience that patients receive and the experience that staff have at work.

Tewkesbury Borough Council

Andrea Holder (elected 2021)

Andrea worked in the public sector for 35 years undertaking a variety of clinical, management, and national roles. She worked for the NHS, the Care Quality Commission, the Department of Health, and in Healthcare Risk Management. Taking early retirement in 2014, she undertook numerous voluntary positions including working for English Heritage, Riding for the Disabled, and as a member of the Luton Children’s Safeguarding Board where-in the latter organisation she undertook the role of ‘Chair of the Multi-Agency Audit Group and actively participated to provide information and evidence for an Ofsted inspection across all children’s safeguarding services in Bedfordshire.

Moving to Gloucestershire in 2017, Andrea has become an active member of her local community and is currently the Chairperson of a small Charity responsible for running and maintaining the village hall which involves close working with residents, the community at large, and the Charity Commission. Since taking up this position, she has updated and re-written the Constitution for the Charity, and overseen the renovation of the Hall. Since retiring, she has continued to maintain an interest in all matters relevant to the NHS and its partners and was particularly pleased to be able to provide local training facilities for the NHS to use during the recent lockdown.

Andrea has a Masters in Industrial Relations and Human Resource Management and is a graduate of the INSEAD Business School (France) where she participated and successfully completed the European Healthcare Leadership Programme.

Ian Craw (elected 2024)

Ian has recently retired after a successful career in the aerospace industry, where he was a company director, company owner and professional design engineer. He has been a recent user of several NHS services within Gloucestershire, and believes he has a clear perspective as a patient himself. Ian wants to represent patients, and campaign for better NHS clinical services, and better rapid access to local health services.

Ian has relevant skills in corporate organisation, driving change, analysis of complex problems, and scrutiny of business systems.

Ian understands patients feel at their most vulnerable when they are ill, and needing to access healthcare, and is certain the public want to know NHS money is being spent wisely, and directly to benefit the health of everyone in the community. He want to make a difference, so everyone regardless of their background, can feel valued, and enjoy really fast access to the best NHS health care in Gloucestershire.