GMMH announces appointment of new Chair
A new Chair has been appointed at Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust (GMMH).
Tony Warne will take up the post of Chair at GMMH from January 2024. He will be taking over from the previous Chair, Bill McCarthy, who took up the post on an interim basis in January 2023.
Tony Warne brings an extensive range of experience from over 40 years of working in mental health services, in clinical, managerial and academic roles in the North West. He joins GMMH from his most recent post as Chair at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust.
Tony began his career as student nurse in Wales before moving into mental health management, which included establishing a ground-breaking young person’s forensic psychiatric facility in Prestwich, Greater Manchester.
Moving into academia, he gained a PhD and professorship in mental health care, and was the first Executive Dean appointment at the University of Salford, leading the largest nursing and allied health care professions school in the North West.
He was the elected Nurse Executive on the Council of Deans and a member of the NMC Thought Leadership Group which developed the current ‘Future Nurse’ education and training standards.
Tony is a Professor Emeritus at the University of Salford. During his academic career he has published a large number of research reports and peer-reviewed journals, and has presented peer-reviewed papers at conferences in 25 different countries. He has co-edited and authored two books, and has had chapters published in another 18 books.
He was also previously a Non Executive Director (NED) for Blackpool Teaching Hospitals and Vice Chair at Wrightington, Wigan and Leigh Teaching Hospitals, where he was also their Vice Chair on the Board of Directors.
Jan Ditheridge, Chief Executive of Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust said:
“On behalf of the Board of Directors, we are delighted to welcome Tony as Chair of GMMH. His wealth of experience working in mental health services in the North West, alongside his Non Executive Director and Chair experience in the NHS, will stand us in great stead. We look forward to working with him closely as we take the next steps in our improvement journey.
“I would like to take this opportunity to thank Bill McCarthy who will step down after 12 months as Chair. Bill has made a greatly positive contribution to GMMH during this time, and he will be missed. I wish him all the best for the future.
“I would also like to thank everyone involved in the group panels, including service users, governors, staff and some of our key external stakeholders for this important appointment.”
Tony Warne said:
“I’m really pleased to be joining GMMH at this time. Great progress has already been made on the improvement journey, and whilst there is still much to do, I’m confident there is a committed, knowledgeable and creative group of colleagues at GMMH who, working with our service users, are well able to meet the challenges and opportunities in front of us.”
Stockport NHS Foundation Trust has over 5,000 staff and is the second largest employer in Stockport. The appointment was made by the Trust’s Council of Governors, which represents people across the community, after a competitive interview process.
