Trust Board Members
As we have moved into a Group arrangement between Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust (LCHS) and United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust (ULHT), we now have a Group Trust Board, which meets bi-monthly in public. This Board undertakes the business of both organisations. For details of Trust Board members, please see below:
Elaine Baylis QPM - group chair (voting member)
Elaine has over 30 years’ experience working in the public sector in Lincolnshire. With a background in policing, her career in the force culminated in the role of assistant chief constable with accountability for service delivery.
She worked extensively with communities, enabling active influence of local policing, reducing crime and disorder and ensuring services considered safeguarding vulnerable members of the community.
An experienced strategic commander with particular interest in responding to emergencies, in 2005 Elaine was awarded the Queen’s Police Medal for distinguished service.
Elaine was previously a director and trustee of Urban Challenge Lincoln, an organisation that delivers a range of services to the community and voluntary sector, and since 2005 has held a similar post at Lincolnshire Action Trust, an organisation that aims to improve the skills and employability of offenders and prisoners.
She was also the independent chair of the Lincolnshire Adults Safeguarding Board from 2012 to 2016, she was previously chair of LCHS from April 2015 until March 2023. Elaine became chair at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust before becoming Group Chair in April 2024.
Professor Karen Dunderdale - group chief executive (voting member)
Karen became substantive Group Chief Executive Officer for Lincolnshire Community and Hospitals NHS Group on Monday 1 July 2024.
She previously held board level roles in Lincolnshire as Chief Nurse and Deputy CEO, as well as board-level roles across the Midlands and North regions as Chief Nurse, Chief Operating Officer, Deputy CEO and acting CEO, as well as having worked in the national nursing team at NHS England. In addition, she held the role of vice chair of her local hospice for a number of years.
Karen qualified as a registered nurse in 1991 and her clinical experience has been in cardiology. She became a cardiac nurse specialist developing cardiac rehabilitation and heart failure services.
She has a PhD in Health Related Quality of Life in Chronic Heart Failure from York University, has contributed substantially to the development of cardiac nursing, and raised expectations nationally within the nursing profession.
In 2023 she was conferred as a Visiting Professor of Nursing for the Faculty of Health & Social Care at the University of Lincoln.
Karen sees her role as a privilege and is passionate about the delivery of high quality care and services for the people of Lincolnshire.
Claire Low - group chief people officer (non-voting member)
Claire joined the Trust in October 2023 in an interim role alongside her role at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust where she has worked as deputy director of people and organisational development since December 2021 before starting work in the director position in October 2022. She was then appointed group chief people officer in 2024. She has a long career spanning over 20 years of working in people services within the NHS and acute trusts and has worked in operational HR, recruitment, transformational projects and deputy director roles, and more recently acted as Director of People at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals NHS Trust for a period of two years. Claire is passionate about the people agenda and investment in training and development of staff, she graduated from her part-time MBA, which she completed under the apprenticeship scheme at her previous Trust. Claire is also a Chartered Fellow of the CIPD and is embedding a ‘just and learning’ as part of the transformation agenda for the People Directorate.
Paul Antunes Goncalves, group chief finance officer (voting member)
Paul has worked for the NHS since 2003 and began his career on the National Graduate Management Training Scheme, which gave him valuable insights and experience of different organisations and teams across the health service. Before joining Lincolnshire Community and Hospitals NHS Group in October 2024, Paul worked at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust for 16 years where his most recent position was as Director of Finance. Paul has great experience of supporting the delivery of large scale capital developments and service transformation that have directly improved services for patients. He is an active member of the Healthcare Financial Management Association where he is a member of the branch committee. He is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants and completed the Nye Bevan Leadership Programme in 2021. Paul actively supports the One NHS Finance Sponsorship Programme, which helps staff from underrepresented groups advance within NHS finance. He is passionate about staff development, clinical engagement and providing best value for our patients and the people of Lincolnshire.
Dr Colin Farquharson - group chief medical officer (voting member)
Dr Farquharson trained at the University of Dundee, then undertook general medical training in Tayside, followed by a period of research sponsored by the British Heart Foundation. He then progressed with advanced training in Cardiology in Yorkshire, as well as at Harefield Hospital (UK), Los Angeles (USA) and Adelaide / Melbourne (Australia). He achieved Completion of UK Specialist Training (CCST) in Cardiology/General (Internal) Medicine in June 2005. He worked as a Consultant Cardiologist at the Diana Princess of Wales Hospital, Grimsby, between 2005-2012, concurrently holding the honorary academic post of Senior Lecturer at Hull-York Medical School. He then took up the post of Senior Staff Cardiologist/Professor of Cardiology at Royal Darwin Hospital, Australia between 2012-2015. He returned to North East Lincolnshire in 2016, as a Consultant Cardiologist and the Deputy Medical Director of Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust before joining the team at United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust. Dr Farquharson is also a Royal College of Pathologists accredited Medical Examiner.
Nerea Odongo - Group Chief Nurse (voting member)
Nerea has a wealth of experience, having worked in the NHS for 20 years. She joined the Group from Northampton General Hospital NHS Trust, where she served as Chief Nurse. Nerea’s background has been in critical care, and she then practised as an Advanced Critical Care Outreach Practitioner before embarking on her nursing leadership journey.
Nerea’s focus has always been to drive improvements in quality, safety and experience for patients and their families. She is also very passionate about professional development, developing clinical leaders and championing sustainable health. She has driven forward leadership development programmes that contribute to equality, diversity and inclusion and promote career development. One of Nerea’s achievements includes leading Northampton General Hospital to become the first organisation in Europe to achieve Pathway to Excellence re-accreditation. This demonstrates her dedication to driving NMAHP’s excellence and creating positive working environments.
Kathryn Helley - group chief clinical governance officer (non-voting member)
Having worked in the NHS for 34 years, Kathryn has 25 years experience of leading clinical and corporate governance, large scale change and improvement at a senior level in the NHS. She has experience of working across acute, community, mental health and commissioning. As a resident of Lincolnshire, Kathryn is passionate about delivering high quality, safe care for patients within the county. She joined ULHT in November 2020 as Deputy Director of Clinical Governance before moving into the role of Director of Clinical Governance.
Mike Parkhill - group chief estates and facilities officer (non-voting member)
Caroline Landon - group chief operating officer (non-voting member)
Daren Fradgley - group chief integration officer (voting member)
Daren is an experienced clinician and senior NHS manager, who is a practising paramedic and has worked in the NHS for 29 years.
He has previously worked across the West Midlands, including in the ambulance service, NHS 111, as well as in Walsall and Sandwell and West Birmingham.
His background is clinical, but he also has experience in strategy, digital, operations and has specialised in integration for the last 10 years. This has included successfully leading work on place-based integration, re-design of intermediate care and integration with PCNs, as well as the deployment of a right-sizing community and primary care model. He also has previous experience at both Deputy CEO and Acting CEO level.
Daren holds a Masters Degree in organisational change and performance and holds a pilots licence.
He is passionate about values based leadership and bringing residents and professionals together to design future models of car.
Jayne Warner - group director of corporate affairs (non-voting member)
Rebecca Brown MBE, Non-Executive Director (voting member)
Rebecca Brown began her career in the NHS as a nurse in 1989.
From 2012 to 2016 Rebecca was Deputy Chief Operating Officer at Northampton General Hospital. In 2016 Rebecca took on the role of Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive at Kettering General Hospital. In 2018 She joined Leicester’s Hospitals as Chief Operating Officer and Deputy Chief Executive. She took on the role of Chief Executive in early 2020. Rebecca successfully lead the Trust during the pandemic, with Leicester Hospitals leading nationally on research and treatment of Covid.
Rebecca has played an integral role in the development of wider system and partnership working within the NHS and latterly with social care, local government and the independent sector.
In 2000, Rebecca was awarded the MBE by Her Majesty the Queen for Services to Nursing.
Rebecca also holds a Non Executive role for ULHT.
Dani Cecchini, Non-Executive Director (voting member)
Until March 2021, Danielle was the Finance Director and Deputy Chief Executive at Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust. Her previous roles include Director of Finance at Lincolnshire Community Health Services NHS Trust - which has given her some insight into the Lincolnshire system challenges and opportunities. Previous roles have also included working within various NHS regulators – including former SHA, TDA and NHSI as well as within commissioning organisations. In the 1990s, Danielle qualified as a Chartered Management Accountant having been trained initially at British Gas and Joined the NHS in 1992. Danielle chairs the Finance Performance and Estates Committee and is a co-opted member of the Audit Committee.
Jim Connolly, Non-Executive Director (voting member)
Jim has a had a varied career in the NHS as a nurse, working in a range of clinical, managerial and executive roles. He worked as a Director of Nursing and was the National Director for Continuing Healthcare with NHS England. In addition he works with the Care Quality Commission as a specialist advisor on governance. Prior to joining LCHS he was a Non Executive Director at Lincolnshire Clinical Commissioning Group and is supporting the vaccination programme as a vaccinator at the Meres Clinic in Grantham.
Neil Herbert, Non-Executive Director (voting member)
Neil is an experienced senior finance and people leader who has led international teams as a Chief Financial Officer, Chief People Officer and Chief D&I Officer. He has a strong financial services/fintech background and is an experienced Board member as both an executive and non-executive Director. Neil’s expertise has been recognised through several professional awards, including winning Director of Finance’s ‘Global CFO of the Year’ in 2015, ‘Global Finance Team of the Year’ in 2016 and Finance Director’s ‘Blue Chip Finance Team of the Year’ in 2016. Neil’s passion for developing people has also led him to train and practice as an executive coach. Neil has lived in Lincolnshire for over 25 years and is also a Board Member at the University of Lincoln where he chairs the Audit Committee, having previously chaired the Remuneration Committee.
Gail Shadlock, Non-Executive Director (voting member)
Gail is a highly experienced director with a professional background in human resources and organisational development and extensive general and project management experience working in the UK and abroad. Gail has worked both as an executive director and as a non-executive director and has led and contributed to significant transformational change across the following sectors; private sector – FTSE 100 and FTSE 350 (major projects include mergers, acquisitions and flotation of a company on the London Stock Exchange); public sector – NHS, police, local government; third/not for profit sector – charity supporting people with learning disabilities and a housing association with a national footprint.
Sarah Buik, Associate Non-Executive Director (non-voting member)
Sarah had a corporate career, based in the UK and overseas. She led the strategic development functions for FTSE 250 and ASX-listed companies after progressing through a range of senior commercial and marketing roles. She has worked collaboratively with executive teams and external partners to design and implement major transformational change. This includes experience contributing to the delivery of digital & data, cost improvement, service development and organisational redesign programmes. Sarah has lived in Lincolnshire since 2017 and is a Trustee and Non-Executive Director in the charity sector within the county. Sarah holds a Masters Degree in Business Administration and a Professional Diploma in Marketing.
Ian Orrell, Associate Non-Executive Director (non-voting member)
Ian joined LCHS in February 2023, on an interim basis. Ian has a wealth of experience in the public sector, particularly with large and complex councils. He has experience of working within senior corporate leadership teams to help reshape and deliver quality frontline adult and children social care services, as well as delivering professional support services.
Ian also has over 30 years as a qualified accountant and previous experience in non-executive roles where partnership approaches were taken to improve service provision.
Vicki Wells, Associate Non-Executive Director (non-voting member)
Vicki was born and educated in Lincolnshire and returned in 2002 after qualifying as a registered nurse and then working in various clinical roles for 15 years in Leicestershire. She then went on to have an extensive career in health and social care regulation with regional and national roles, working latterly as a Deputy Chief Inspector. Vicki has successfully delivered major regulatory programmes resulting in improved outcomes for people who use services. Vicki is a Trustee in the Charity Sector and is a Panel Chair of the Fitness to Practice Committee for the Nursing and Midwifery Council. Vicki holds a Masters Degree in Policy, Organisation and Change in Professional Care, is a Neuro Linguistics Programming Practitioner and a Coach.