Our Academy of Specialists

The Healthskills Directors are supported by a diverse team of specialists from the commercial and public sectors.  Our Academy of Specialists bring a wealth of clinical and managerial leadership expertise and experience that spans the health, local government and prison service sectors.  This team enhances our ability to provide innovative and leading edge support to our clients.

Academy Members:

• Allen McKay
  Allen is a founding partner of a specialist internal and change communication agency. The agency defines its primary role as helping clients to change attitudes and behaviours to drive improved performance and faster achievement of commercial objectives.
  
  Allen has acted as a consultant / communications advisor to the senior management of a number of organisations in the public, private and voluntary / charity sectors.
  
  Allen’s work with clients is founded on a firm and un-shakeable belief that effective communication is at the heart of any successful organisation; it is the glue that holds everything together. Get your communication right and everything else will fall into place more easily for you.
  
  Allen takes a keen interest in educational issues – he is Chair of Governors at a 300 pupil Junior School in East Sussex and plays an active role in helping improve the effectiveness of the School Improvement Service, with particular reference to the role of governance in schools, funded by the Children’s Services Department at East Sussex County Council.
• Barbi Birdseye
  Barbi is an engaging trainer, facilitator, presenter and coach with a passion for customer service and a drive to promote business improvement through people development. A foundation of experience gained within British Airways, promoting best practice principles both internally to colleagues and externally to visiting UK business leaders.
• Bernie Brooks

  Bernie is a leadership and organizational development specialist with board level experience. He has worked as a practitioner, manager and consultant in the public and voluntary sectors at local, regional and national level. His professional interests include; the role of leadership in culture and place shaping, public sector policy – application and evaluation, governance and organisational form in public services, the role of groups and teams in organisational life and organisational discourse and narrative.
  
  He is an Associate of Ernst and Young currently working on Clinical Commissioning Development.
  Bernie is also an Associate of the National School of Government where he is a member of faculty on the Cabinet Office Top Manager Programme – a senior leadership programme spanning the public, independent and private sectors.
  
  He was Head of Leadership and Organisation Development for a Strategic Health Authority (80,000 staff across Kent, Surrey and Sussex) and prior to that a Senior Fellow in Leadership at the Kings Fund - where he directed the Top Manager Programme and coordinated the consultancy practice.

• Carole Renshaw
  Carole is an experienced and energising freelance Organisational Development Consultant and Facilitator working across service industries in health, local government and the housing sector. Influenced by a senior background career history in the NHS and Higher Education, and is known and described as a seasoned policy interpreter and strategist implementer. Carole possesses a high level collaborative and networking skills, together with a robust performance management approach which underpins creative and sustainable solutions for long term business improvement.
  
  Carole has a successful track record of facilitating change in fluid and ambiguous environments and is comfortable in working with individuals and Boards at executive and middle management tiers. She has a passion for supporting people to explore beyond the given, has a reputation for being able to quickly assimilate complex scenarios and is known for being outcomes thinking in her approach and solutions.
• Carys Owen
  Carys has a passion for developing people. She believes strongly in capitalising on individuals natural styles and uses this as the basis for helping people to achieve personal and professional goals.
  
  From initially studying and building her career in the UK, Carys moved to working for multi-national companies across the world from bases in Europe and Asia. Following this transition, her sensitivity and effectiveness in facilitating learning for mixed culture groups has earned her the respect of participants in her development programmes worldwide.
  
  Equipped with an academic background in IT (undergraduate) and HRM (postgraduate) Carys specialises in business change in a commercial environment ensuring a balance is struck between people, process and technology.
  
  Carys brings a pragmatic and insightful approach to any project and is constantly being inspired by her international projects to create new and innovative learning interventions.
  
  In addition to being an experienced learning and development specialist she has also been a professional facilitator and project manager for over 12 years. Carys can also bring a structured and organised approach to workshops, events and projects.
• Cath Heath
  Cath is an experienced coach and development consultant with a commitment to helping existing and developing leaders get the best out of themselves and their people. She is a strategic thinker with a pragmatic approach and a blend of commercial management and people development skills.
  
  Cath works with clients from a range of sectors including Banking, Financial services, Public sector and Professional Services. Prior to this she held HR/OD roles operating at a senior level, having moved into HR following a successful career in sales and business management.
  
  Whilst familiar with a number of different styles and interventions, Cath’s natural style is ‘insight-focused’ which means that attention is paid to increasing insight into how the coachee operates in order to help them find more effective ways of dealing with the challenges they face. Influenced by the theories of Transactional Analysis and Relational coaching, Cath works with a range of models, tools and techniques to support behavioural change and improve personal effectiveness.
• David Thomas
  David has 23 years working with the NHS in various forms.
  
  David joined the Ambulance Service in Greater Manchester in the 80’s and trained as a Paramedic, a Tutor and General Manager before leaving to enter the wider NHS.
  
  He has led large efficiency programmes, service reconfiguration and transformation programmes in the large complex Acute Trusts and Primary Care sectors. He specialises in efficiency work with the NHS, in Organisational Development and leading Service Reconfiguration to drive out better organisational performance.
  
  David divides his time between private sector consultancy and works for Jim Easton at the DoH and the NHS Top Leaders Programme; to help them ensure local QIPP plans are reliable and ambitious. He is currently working with Trust leaders around London and the South and the top team at Mid Staffordshire.
  
  David has three passions; his family, the NHS and Manchester United.
• Dawn Scott
  A Masters graduate in management with distinction, Dawn has served 4 years at Chief Executive Level in the NHS. With excellent communication and networking skills, she is a high achiever who is committed to improving the potential of people and organisations. A skilled facilitator with a developing portfolio as an executive and business coach, Dawn gains the trust of clients through her natural empathetic approach.
• Deborah McKenzie
  Until July 2009 Deb was Principal in the Organisational Development and Policy unit at OPM, working on a wide variety of projects ranging from supporting Health Trusts as they introduced Foundation status practices (which entailed them becoming more commercial in their approach and changing their governance structures and operating models); to reviewing the latest Government legislation and guidance to determine how it could be effectively implemented; to working with cohorts of senior civil servants who wished to improve their Leadership capabilities; to individual and team coaching for Directors/Senior Managers across the public sector. Deb is a Non Executive Director at Royal Surrey County Hospital. She is also an NHS LQF 360 accredited facilitator and has MBTI accreditation, OPP, Oxford. She has extensive Leadership Development experience.
• Professor Sir Denis Pereira Gray
  Sir Denis worked for 38 years as a GP and established the first postgraduate university department of general practice in Europe at the University of Exeter He was later appointed Professor and Director of the Exeter University Postgraduate Medical School.
  
  Sir Denis has been twice elected by the registered medical practitioners in England to the GMC; Chairman of Council and later President of the Royal College of General Practitioners; Chairman of the JCPTPGP, and was Chairman of the Trustees of the Nuffield Trust. Sir Denis was Vice-Chairman and then Chairman of the Academy of all the Medical Royal Colleges. He was knighted for services to quality assurance.
  
  Sir Denis has been a member of several Government appointed Committees and has been a senior staff member in a regional health authority, and a Non-Executive Director of two other health authorities.
  
  He is currently an Assessor for the Queen’s Award for Higher and Further Education, a member of the Patient Information Advisory Group (PIAG), Patron of the National Association for Patient Participation, and President of the children’s charity, What About the Children?
• Graham Oddey
  Graham is a highly experienced change programme director, with unique approaches to change management, leadership development and operational performance improvement. He began his business career in 1981 and has worked for over 65 organisations across many sectors.
  
  He has worked extensively with both public and private sector healthcare clients since 1994. His healthcare experience includes acute and primary care trusts, strategic health authorities and the Department of Health, as well as private hospital and insurance companies.
  
  He has led healthcare projects which developed leadership and staff capability, improved patient experience, smoothed trust mergers, prevented significant cost increases, improved management information, reduced back office costs, eliminated bed blocking and reduced patient waiting times.
• Heather Wicks
  Heather’s passion is empowering and delivering positive change with individuals and organisations. A career spanning 23 years within the NHS as a clinician and leader combined with a Masters in the Management of Innovation and Change and extensive coaching and OD practice, has resulted in a rare combination of deep and broad knowledge of the NHS and commissioning and expertise in making transformational change happen.
  
  Having worked as an executive director in a Primary Care Trust and a number of senior leadership roles in commissioning, quality and clinical governance as well as that of professional advisor to the Chief Health Professions Officer, Heather has a rounded and diverse experience of provision and commissioning of healthcare.
  
  Heather works with others using a dynamic and action orientated style to empower and facilitate change. She is a qualified personal development coach and has designed and delivered numerous learning and development events focused on coaching, leadership and organisational development. She has been extensively involved in clinical engagement and leadership in commissioning.
• Howard Perry
  Howard brings healthcare management expertise from leading the efficiency and effectiveness programme for the 26 Hospitals within BUPA Hospitals Ltd (now SPIRE Healthcare) where he was the National Head of Network Change.
  
  Howard has extensive NHS Community Healthcare experience including leadership of Billericay, Brentwood and Wickford PCT as Chief Executive throughout its five year life achieving 3 star performance within the Healthcare Commission star rating system and Improving Working Lives Practice Plus status. Howard is no stranger to the North Thames corridor having held Executive roles within the former Barking, Havering and Brentwood Health Community Trust.
  
  Prior to joining the NHS (in the early 1990s) he held senior Project Management roles in the aerospace electronics industry working on a wide variety of projects from the Space Shuttle SkyNet Programme to the avionics for a new Westland Helicopter.
• Dr Isobel Simpson
  Isobel has worked extensively with leadership teams and boards of global blue-chip organisations in a wide range of industries: petrochemicals, IT services, telecoms and renewable energies. She has both functional and operational experience including strategy and planning, business management and sales operations. Her key skills include corporate, business and marketing strategy development and implementation, financial management, planning, programme management, and analysis. An effective and persuasive communicator with strong influencing skills, she operates successfully at all organisational levels. She is an experienced leader of multifunctional and geographically diverse teams and has a track record of successful delivery.
• James Murray
  James works as principle associate of Provex Consultancy and is an Independent Financial Consultant.
  
  He is a health sector finance professional with over 25 years experience in a number of different NHS organisations at senior level in primary care, secondary care and the civil service. James offers a range of skills in financial, planning, organisational and performance management issues.
• Jane Honeybourne
  Jane originally trained in the NHS where she worked for over twenty years. She took a special interest in the introduction of multi-disciplinary training and development and was responsible for the successful introduction of a major change initiative in primary care and the development of working partnerships with local industry. She is an experienced Action Learning Set Facilitator.
  
  Jane has an MSc in Manager and Organisational Development and has a Diploma in Performance Coaching. She is Vice Chair of the Board of Directors of a Birmingham based charity.
• Jane Keep
  With a philosophical consciousness, Jane works as a practitioner on the processes of organisational and personal change. Her primary focus is to bring true wellbeing and harmony back into the workplace and to individuals in every setting. She has studied, researched, presented and practiced HRM and OD for over 20 years at a senior level as well as at a strategic/national level in the NHS, (having been working in and around the NHS for 31 years).
  
  Jane has during the last 10 years worked in the wider public sector, voluntary and private sectors. Jane has worked with individuals, teams, leaders and Boards and organizations in many locations and works in ‘real-time’ using real issues or real ‘in-tray’ challenges. She has coached over 500 teams in a variety of workplace settings, in addition to facilitating 40 workplace departments/functions towards a greater clarity and sense of purpose as well as from disharmony to more harmonious working practices.
  
  Jane works simply and clearly with the ability to connect up the seemingly disparate elements, projects, issues or challenges so that they become more focused with greater clarity. As an external consultant for the last 11 years she has also undertaken a number of research projects, and published papers in journals and books. She has have worked overseas in Hong Kong, and briefly in Africa and Europe (recently in Holland) and fairly extensively in Ireland, as well as all over England and Wales.
• Jill Peters
  Jill works for the Procurement Investment Commercial Division of the DH supporting the national commissioning team with the development of commissioning in line with the white paper ‘Equity and Excellence: liberating the NHS’. Previously she led a national programme developing Commercial Support across the NHS.
  
  Jill has worked in a variety of senior executive leadership roles culminating in chief executive of two PCTs in Hertfordshire with a combined budget of £340m; 250 primary care contracts and a workforce of 1200.
  
  Jill has worked across the spectrum of health services in a combination of healthcare provider and commissioning roles utilising her nursing background and experience in business management, financial acumen and innovative development to influence and modernise patient services.
• Jo Hollands
  Jo has extensive experience of facilitating NHS groups across the UK on a wide range of issues - including strategic decision-making processes, organisational and clinical governance, service re-design & improvement, developing commissioning plans & business cases, project & programme management, leadership, influencing & persuasion, effective team-working & change management.
  
  Her earlier career went from metabolic biochemistry research to clinical / health services research. In 1996, she became actively involved with the early pioneers of Evidence-Based Practice in the UK – and this led to her decision to set up her own company. Jo is accredited at Level B (ability, aptitude and personality assessment & development) in Occupational Psychology and in the use of Myers Briggs, 16PF, FIRO-B and Belbin Team Role profiling tools.
• John Jackson
  John is a CEO with extensive general and operations management experience derived in public and private sectors at board level in the UK and internationally. He previously lived and managed businesses in much of Western Europe and is experienced in leading global lines of business. John now works as an Interim Manager and has successfully completed assignments in the UK, continental Europe and the Middle East.
  
  John specialises the strategic leadership of organisational change and transformation, as well as performance improvement, and has a strong delivery focus. He is highly adaptable and rapidly begins to contribute to an organisation. John has excellent commercial skills, which he developed in small and large subsidiaries. He is a ‘hands-on’ manager and has a passionate belief that virtually all organisations can improve their performance through focus and motivation - John inspires others through clear vision, direction and enthusiasm.
  
  John is also a Non-Executive Director of an Ambulance Service. He provides private sector operational, commercial and business development expertise into the Trust, as well as being the lead on Emergency preparedness.
• John Pearson
  John contributes to strategic and operational business initiatives by combining business experience with organisational, team and individual development skills. His expertise has been gained over twenty-seven years in high technology environments whilst working within manufacturing, communications, service industries, finance, IT and public sector organisations. John manages to successfully combine consulting, project and management skills with a strong commercial base gained through business management, sales support and project management to organisations in the UK, Europe and Asia. His professional experience is complemented by Six Sigma process improvement skills and postgraduate development and research in Organisational Development and Change.
  
  John is achievement and team oriented with strong conceptual, interpersonal and communication skills. He relishes challenge and is keen to develop and apply the potential of colleagues, customers and himself.
• Jude Goddard
  Jude is a highly skilled facilitator and organisational development consultant with over twenty years of public sector service. Before opening her private practice she was a Primary Care Trust Director for five years taking the lead in vital modernisation programmes overseeing changes in service delivery and the commissioning and decommissioning of hospitals. One of her key accomplishments has been to manage wide scale consultation processes across local communities and with different public sector partner organisations helping transition to take place in an inclusive and pragmatic manner. An important result of her experience is that she has worked extensively with people from a broad spectrum of public sector organisations to successfully de commission a district hospital to re-provide community services locally.
• Kate Adey
  John contributes to strategic and operational business initiatives by combining business experience with organisational, team and individual development skills. His expertise has been gained over twenty-seven years in high technology environments whilst working within manufacturing, communications, service industries, finance, IT and public sector organisations. John manages to successfully combine consulting, project and management skills with a strong commercial base gained through business management, sales support and project management to organisations in the UK, Europe and Asia. His professional experience is complemented by Six Sigma process improvement skills and postgraduate development and research in Organisational Development and Change.
  
  John is achievement and team oriented with strong conceptual, interpersonal and communication skills. He relishes challenge and is keen to develop and apply the potential of colleagues, customers and himself.
• Kelley Webb Martin
  Kelley has over 15 years experience in Health and Social care with a focus in Service improvement, change management and transformation. Kelley developed service specifications following diagnostic and system analysis and successfully implemented independent management of care packages for clients with challenging health and social concerns and received a recognition award as a result. Kelley is a clinician with a post-graduate in Public health and the NHS environment is of particular interest. She has held posts as an Interim Manager in Clinical Governance, worked as part of a project team to develop DPO and tariffs for a service provider in London and facilitated professional development forums for managers, as part of re-structure and transformational processes.
• Laura Lindell
  Laura is a Training Consultant and Coach with many years experience delivering programmes in both the public and the private sector. Laura has a degree in psychology and is a Master Practitioner and Certified Trainer in Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP). She uses a coaching approach which enables individuals and teams to recognise and work with their values and to acquire the tools which will enable them to accelerate their own performance.
  
  Laura’s professional background includes 16 years lecturing in psychology and human performance in further and higher education following which she spent 5 years in a senior management role. Laura has been delivering a range of training programmes for a cross section of the NHS for over 6 years. She works with clinical and non- clinical staff on a range of programmes designed to improve their ability to improve their performance. She is known for her warmth and energy as well as her passion for creating a climate in which to maximise learning.
• Linda Graves
  Linda has 23 years experience of working in a range of public sector organisations to drive service improvement across whole systems. The last 8 years have been in the NHS, most recently as Associate Director in a community care trust; whilst simultaneously providing OD Consultancy to partner NHS organisations.
  
  Linda is a skilled facilitator who brings passion and enthusiasm to any development or event. She is keen to create a climate whereby participants engage fully, learning is maximised and objectives are achieved. Linda ensures this happens by underpinning her planning and delivery with reference to OD theory, training expertise, coaching skills and much learning from practical experience!
  
  Linda has an MSc in Organisational Development & Consultancy, Diploma in Coaching for Business, MBTI accreditation, Diploma in Market Research and qualifications in Training of Adults. Linda is a great believer in enabling personal achievement and as such is a college governor. Her passion outside of her work is cooking …. and trekking and walking in the high mountains of Britain and the wider world.
• Marie Sedgwick
  Marie is a dynamic, energetic and experienced senior health care professional with 27 years experience working in the NHS as a nurse, midwife and senior manager prior to becoming an independent management consultant. She has extensive knowledge of patient journeys, NHS systems, processes and business functions, coupled with a broad ranging and transferable skill set applied through a diverse range of health care settings, nationally, regionally and locally.
  
  Competent at skilfully utilising strong clinical, leadership, influencing, negotiation, change management and project/programme management skills, Marie enjoys working with teams and across health & social care communities. She holds a successful track record in complex change management and service redesign, supporting executive boards, operational and clinical teams. Marie’s key strengths are in leading and supporting the delivery of organisational objectives, targets and standards through development of staff, performance support / management, project / programme management, service improvement, transfer of skills and individual coaching and is accredited to give LQF 360 feedback. Marie brings a strong value based approach to managing, supporting and developing individuals and multidisciplinary teams. She is able to initiate and apply intervention strategies to support major change and turnaround programmes both nationally and locally resulting in improvements in health outcomes, patient experience and staff satisfaction.
  
  Marie has held leadership roles with the NHS and DH national teams supporting health communities to deliver improved and safe health care. More recently, Marie has, on behalf of Primary Care Trusts, led successful service transformation programmes across the health community resulting in new and innovative range of services, implementation of new clinical and operational systems and processes; and improvements to patient safety and quality whilst enhancing the patient and staff experience.
• Dr Mary Holmes
  Mary has a Masters degree in leadership in the public sector and in leadership and learning in the context of complex change. She has worked in health and social care organisations facilitating change and developing teams to achieve results.
  
  She has considerable experience in all sectors of the NHS, often working across local health communities to build partnership that relate to the needs of service users.
  
  Mary facilitates action learning sets with clinicians and managerial staff and provides coaching to enhance personal effectiveness. By using a range of psychometric instruments (including 360-degree leadership tools) she can help individuals and teams to focus on behaviours that will enhance performance and delivery.
  
  Mary is a personal development advisor on the NHS management training scheme (MTS) and has delivered Managing Health & Social Care (MHSC) programmes for a range of organisations. In addition she has written open learning materials and developed a web-based self assessment tool that encourages an analytical approach to reflective practice and personal development planning.
• Mazzie Sharp
  Initially working in the NHS primary care sector, as a practice manager, and following a period working with a PCT in Sussex, Mazzie became interested in organisational development and cultures, and worked on service redesign with the Modernisation Agency. This involved supporting clinical and administrative teams. Mazzie enjoys the challenges of working across organisational cultures, and helping groups to see and understand not only the patient perspective, but also each others, when seeking best outcomes. At Londonwide LMCs, Mazzie worked at CEO and Director level, negotiating and brokering best outcomes for the GP constituents represented, whilst maintaining and strengthening relationships with commissioning colleagues at the PCTs. She is currently studying for a coaching/mentoring qualification which will provide her with the enhanced skills to begin to work with individuals.
• Mike Hill
  Mike joined Healthskills in 2011 and was previously employed in the health service, working in training and development. He continues to work closely with a wide range of health service professionals, and much of that time is now spent with doctors on various leadership development and interpersonal effectiveness programmes.
  
  Mike is qualified as a coach at postgraduate level and as a mediator where he regularly helps resolve organisational conflict. He is also accredited to provide NHS LQF 360 feedback.
  
  With experience in delivering management and leadership development and also providing facilitation to aid team development he enjoys helping teams and individuals recognise and reach their potential.
• Mike Nelson
  Mike is an experienced, organization consultant, with 10 years in UK Healthcare followed by 15 years in a major UK retail company with an annual turnover in excess of £11 billion and employees of 95,000. Mike is now in his 6th Year as an independent Organisational Consultant.
  
  Mike specializes in Organisation Development solutions, both in the UK and in Europe. He is experienced at designing and delivering major programmes including change, leadership, coaching and team development; Mike is also a highly experienced Executive & Personal Coach.
  
  Mike lives with his family in the North West of England, travelling extensively for work. He is an accomplished pilot and participates in outdoor activities for both recreation and work.
• Miranda Coates
  After starting her career at the Leeds General Infirmary, Miranda worked for the Institute of Health Services Management and also for the Market Research Society. In 1997 she established herself as a training consultant working with public and third sector organisations.
  
  Miranda has worked across the NHS offering both training consultancy and intensive coaching for individuals with performance problems. She has strong experience of developing managers, whatever their background, and facilitating their leadership skills particularly in action learning.
• Richard Quinton
  Richard is a qualified Chartered Accountant with over 30 years experience in commercial, public sector and charity sectors. For over 25 years, Richard worked in retail including as Finance Director of Biba, Selfridges/Lewis’s Group, SWEB Retail and Gateway Foodmarkets. A core component of his work was introducing robust information systems; developing/recruiting strong, successful finance teams and major company restructuring and reorganisation. Richard spent 7 years as Finance Director for the Isle of Wight NHS Trust covering acute, community, mental health and ambulance services. During this time he was responsible for the merger of the island’s Acute and Community Trusts and the finance and IT strategy supporting service development within the Trust. Efficiency was significantly improved to meet stringent CIPs so that the Trust achieved financial balance. Richard set up the organisational structure, recruited and developed the finance team and introduced effective management information for the Board.
• Sarah Banham
  Sarah is an Advanced Nurse Practitioner and contract holder of Rowley Healthcare PMS Practice. Sarah has always been active in pioneering innovation and improvement in service delivery. She is involved at a national level as advisor to the Department of Health, at sector level as a Board and PEC member of Wyre Forest PCT and at local level in spearheading new approaches to delivering primary and community based services.
  
  As one of the few nurses who own and hold principal roles in general practice, Sarah is committed to the development of new roles working across traditional boundaries. The practice has succeeded in repatriating 70% of all outpatient activity to primary care over the last 3 years, reducing emergency admissions, reducing referral rates and improving preventative health and social care of the local aging population.
• Sarah Daley
  Sarah is an experienced and qualified training professional with excellent presentation and personal skills and a history of success in people and organisational development roles in both the public and private sector. She is a strong team player, energetic, motivational and innovative, with skills in designing and delivering impactful business training, coaching and mentoring solutions at all levels.
• Stephanie Cartwright
  Stephanie has worked in and alongside the NHS for nearly 17 years and is currently Head of Market and Commissioning Development for Dudley PCT in the West Midlands. Her other roles in the NHS have included Executive Assistant, Business Manager and Practice Based Commissioning Manager.
  
  Stephanie worked for Healthskills for four years as Client Support and Business Manager and was involved in many projects supporting organisational development and the evolvement of Practice Based Commissioning, before returning to the NHS in 2008.
  
  Her current responsibilities include leading system management and market development for the PCT, and also leading the development of both Partnership and Practice Based Commissioning. She is goal lead for Championing Innovation and Excellence, which is one of the PCT’s 10 goals as part of their Strategic Plan.
  
  Stephanie has an MSc in Organisational Development and Management Learning, and a Post Graduate Diploma in Strategic Commissioning, and has a particular interest in developing relationships with all stakeholders in the spirit of a patient centred NHS.