Non-Executive Directors

Richard Sumray
Non-Executive Chair

Richard Sumray is an experienced Chair. He was Chair of Hillingdon Hospital NHS Foundation Trust from 2014-2019 and was Chair of NHS Haringey (Primary Care Trust) for 10 years from 2001-2011. He was Chair of the Barnet Enfield and Haringey Strategy Co-ordination Group from 2008-2011 that supported the development of a strategy for acute sectors. Richard is well used to the complexities of the NHS and is keen use his experience in Bedfordshire. Richard graduated from Bristol University in Economics and Accounting. He has held many roles in Education, Metropolitan Police, Magistrate and Voluntary Sector.

• Chair Board of Directors
• Chair Council of Governors
• Chair Charitable Funds
• Chair Sustainability Committee
• Member Executive Remuneration and Nomination Committee
• Member Redevelopment Board
• Member FIP
• Medical Staff Committee (MSC) and Junior MSC
• CoG Membership and Communication Meeting
• CoG Constitutional Working Group
• CoG Remuneration and Nomination
• Chair Medical Lectures
• Link for Volunteering
• Link Outpatients
• AAC (Consultant Recruitment)

Mark Prior
Non-Executive Director

Mark is a chartered project manager and surveyor with over 35 years experience in the construction and development sectors. He was Managing Director for E C Harris in the Middle East and grew a single location single service office of 30 staff, into a business, operating from Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Qatar and KSA, delivering outcome based project services, with over 700 staff.

He was Group Head of Transportation for EC Harris, building a sustainable and diversified portfolio of international business and focusing growth in project and construction services.

• Chair Redevelopment Board
• Member of FIP
• Member of Workforce Committee
• Member Audit and Risk Committee
• Member Sustainability Committee
• Estates Link
• Link PLACE Meeting
• Link PLACE Assessments
• Link for Car Parking
• Link Health and Safety
• Link for Emergency Planning

Simon Barton
Non-Executive Director

Simon is a highly experienced Chief Financial Officer. He is an accountant and has 10 years’ experience in investment banking. He has a broad range of experience in financial planning and analysis, a very strong history of developing and negotiating creative financial outcomes, fundraising and completing strategic transactions, and an established record of adding value with innovative solutions.

• Chair Digital Strategy Meeting
• Chair GDE Programme Board
• Member Audit and Risk
• Member of COSQ
• Member of FIP

Annet Gamell
Non-Executive Director

Annet qualified at Charing Cross Hospital Medical School in 1980. After further training and a spell in The Sudan with Save The Children during the Ethiopian famine, she worked clinically as a GP in Buckinghamshire from 1985 to 2019.

Appointments include CEO/Chief Clinical officer of NHS Chiltern CCG until 2016; Chair of Thames Valley Urgent and Emergency Care Network until 2017.

Current roles include Board Member and Chair of Primary Care Commissioning Committee NHS Ealing CCG; Chair of Quality and Performance Committee North West London CCGs and Council Member for Bucks New University.

• Chair Quality Committee
• Member Workforce Committee
• Member Digital Strategy Committee
• Medical Education Division
• Chair Local Clinical Excellence Awards
• Clinical Audit and Effectiveness Committee
• Nominated NED for Consultants under disciplinary
• Link Safeguarding
• Ethics Committee representative
• Falls Representative
• Maternity Representative (Board Safety Champion)
• Link for Organ Donation
• AAC (Consultant Recruitment)

Tansi Harper

Non-Executive Director

Tansi Harper’s professional career was in education. She has been passionate about making greater connections between public services and the voluntary sector and represented the Patient and Public voice on NHS Boards for the past 21 years, including SHA, PCTs and more latterly CCGs. She was appointed as the first Chair of the Northamptonshire STP and, as it moved to ICS, chaired the Collaborative Stakeholder Forum.

Tansi has a particular interest in mental health and has been Chair of a Probation Trust, and chaired a transformation board bring four such Trusts together including Bedfordshire’s. She has also been Chair of a charity, CAN, working with clients with substance misuse across Northamptonshire and Bedfordshire, a Board member of Richmond Fellowship, a nationwide supported housing and mental health charity and a Board member of St Andrew’s Healthcare Trust, which specialised in meeting the needs of most complex patients with mental health conditions.

Tansi is a lay member of the Dept of Health’s Independent Reconfiguration Panel, which advises the Secretary of State on possible solutions when national transformation reach an impasse.

• Chair Workforce Committee
• Member Audit and Risk
• Member Quality Committee
• Member Executive Remuneration and Nomination Committee
• Member Redevelopment Board
• Chair Patient Experience Council
• Guardian for Health and Wellbeing
• Chair Appeals for staff dismissal and general issues
• AAC (Consultant Recruitment)

David Harrison

Non-Executive Director

David has been a resident of Bedford Borough for almost 40 years, and now lives in Biddenham. Subsequent to qualifying as a chartered accountant, David has worked in the public sector as a senior civil servant (with both the Department of Health and HM Treasury), in the private sector (in investment banking and consultancy) and in the third sector (with charities and social enterprises).

David has considerable NED experience. Stepping down in 2021, David spent a combined 11 years as a NED, and then chairman, of a medium size community health and primary care services social enterprise in Essex. He also has a well-developed interest in integrated care, both nationally and internationally, and is currently NED and Treasurer of the International Foundation for Integrated Care.

• Chair FIP
• Member Redevelopment
• Member Digital Strategy
• Member Charitable Funds
• Member Remuneration and Nomination
• AAC (Consultant Recruitment)

Yasmin Mahmood

Yasmin is a resident of Bedford. Since April 2021, she has been Senior Equality Diversity and Inclusion (ED&I) Programme Manager for Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West ICS. She has been responsible for designing and implementing the Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy for 2021-25; for leading and influencing ICS stakeholders to deliver an agreed improvement programme; and for monitoring, reporting and strengthening accountability within the healthcare system. She was previously Equality, Diversity and Inclusion lead at Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust (May 2018 – April 2021); and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager for NHS South East Commissioning Support Unit, which merged with North and East London (NEL) Commissioning Support Unit in 2016-17.

• Member Quality Committee
• Member Workforce Committee
• Member Remuneration and Nomination
• Member Charitable Funds Committee
• Link Equality and Diversity
• AAC (Consultant Recruitment)

Hannah O’Neill

Hannah is currently Chair of Milton Keynes Urgent Care (MKUC). She lives in Milton Keynes and went to university in Luton. Hannah was the Cabinet lead for Public Health in Milton Keynes which has a shared public health team with Bedford and Central Bedfordshire Councils and, therefore understands the area and connectivity with the local communities.

Her early career was in project management for voluntary sector organisations, she spent six years as a Director of the Equality Council and is currently Chief Operating Officer at York House Centre. Hannah was active in local politics until 2021, as an elected member for Milton Keynes Council where she was Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing.

She is motivated by a strong sense of public accountability and patient focus. Her third sector executive career brings extensive experience.