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Jane Tomkinson OBE
Chief Executive Officer
Jane has been Chief Executive Officer since February 2024.
Jane first joined the Trust as Acting Chief Executive Officer in December 2022 and held the position until she became the substantive Chief Executive Officer in February 2024. During this time, Jane provided senior leadership support to the Trust as well as to Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust where she had been the Chief Executive Officer since 2013.
Since joining the NHS in 1990, Jane has held a number of executive level positions including Director of Finance at the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust between 2004 and 2011. Whilst working at the Trust, Jane was awarded the prestigious Finance Director of the Year award by the Healthcare Financial Management Association. Following this role, Jane moved to work as a Finance Director at the North of England Strategic Health Authority. Jane was awarded an OBE for services to NHS finance in the Queen’s New Year’s Honours in 2016.
In addition to her NHS role Jane chairs the North West Coast Clinical Research Network and is an independent governor for Liverpool John Moores University.
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Sue Pemberton
Director of Nursing & Quality and Deputy Chief Executive Officer
Sue became the Director of Nursing & Quality and the Deputy Chief Executive in February 2024. She is also the Director of Infection Prevention and Control and the Executive Lead For Safeguarding.
Sue started her career in the NHS in 1990 working as a nurse at Salford Royal Hospital when she qualified. She progressed to Assistant Director of Nursing at Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust before joining Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust as Deputy Director of Nursing in 2010. She went on to become the Director of Nursing and Quality at the Trust in May 2012. Sue is a Florence Nightingale scholar and has a passion for ensuring patients and their families receive the highest standards of care.
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Karen Edge
Chief Finance Officer
Karen became Chief Finance Officer in April 2024.
Karen has worked in the NHS for 18 years having had a previous career in private sector finance. Karen is an experienced NHS finance leader and prior to joining the Trust, Karen was the Chief Finance Officer at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. She has also previously held other senior leadership roles in local NHS Trusts including Acting Director of Finance and Deputy Director of Finance at Wirral University Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and; Deputy Director of Finance at Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.
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Dr Nigel Scawn
Medical Director
Dr Nigel Scawn joined the Trust as Medical Director in 2022.
Prior to starting at the Countess, Nigel was the Deputy Medical Director and Lead for Patient Safety at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital. Nigel qualified and worked as a pharmacist prior to studying medicine. Following his medical training he worked as a Consultant in Anaesthesia and Intensive Care at Arrowe Park Hospital before moving to Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital where he was a Consultant for 22 years.
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Cathy Chadwick
Chief Operating Officer
Cathy joined the Trust as Chief Operating Officer in March 2022.
Cathy has worked in the NHS for 19 years and has a Post Graduate Diploma in Healthcare Leadership.She has previously worked in large acute teaching trusts, mainly in the East Midlands and latterly as Deputy Chief Operating Officer at Liverpool University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Cathy also currently works as the lead Chief Operating Officer, across Cheshire and Merseyside for Elective Restoration and she is passionate about improving cancer care for patients
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Jonathan Develing
Director of Strategy and Partnerships
Jonathan joined the Trust as Director of Strategy and Partnerships in April 2024.
Jonathan started his NHS career in 1980 in general and psychiatric nursing, before moving into contract and systems management. He has considerable experience at a National and Regional level having worked as Regional Director of Operations and Delivery for NHS England (North) and as Chief Executive of NHS Wirral Clinical Commissioning Group. Jonathan joins the Trust from Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital NHS Foundation Trust where he was Director of Strategic Partnerships. More recently Jonathan has also led the Cheshire and Merseyside systems wide approach to Cardiovascular Vascular Disease prevention.
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Vicki Wilson
Acting Chief People Officer
Vicki joined the Trust as Interim Deputy Chief People Officer in June 2024 and became Acting Chief People Officer in January 2025.
Vicki has 20 years’ experience as a people professional in the NHS and joined the Trust from NHS Cheshire and Merseyside where she was Associate Director of Workforce. She has held a number of senior human resource and organisational development roles across Cheshire and Merseyside, including at Liverpool Heart and Chest NHS Foundation Trust, Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust, Alder Hey Children’s NHS Foundation Trust and the both the Royal Liverpool and Aintree University Hospitals (pre-merger).
A Chartered Fellow of the CIPD, Vicki is also a trained coach and mediator. Vicki leads the people agenda at the Trust and is passionate about making the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Trust a great place to work for everyone, with significant focus on building a positive organisational culture through engaging, developing, and empowering staff.
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Jason Bradley
Chief Digital and Data Officer
Jason has been Chief Digital and Data Officer since May 2024.
Jason has worked in the NHS since 1987 and has held a number of senior roles working in, and supporting, the NHS in the South West, London, Yorkshire and Cheshire Merseyside and at national level. Specialising in healthcare information technology and management, he has provided senior leadership for organisation-wide change management and transformation programmes involving the deployment of new technology, systems and analytics. Jason is also the Trust Senior Information Risk Officer (SIRO).
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Karan Wheatcroft
Director of Governance, Risk and Improvement
Karan joined the Trust as Director of Governance, Risk and Improvement in June 2024.
With more than 20 years of experience working in the NHS, Karan brings a wealth of expertise in governance, risk and assurance arrangements at Board level. As Company Secretary, Karan leads the Trust’s governance framework, regulatory and legal compliance, supporting the Board and Council of Governors in discharging their duties.
Karan also leads the Trust’s legal, risk, improvement and communication teams, with a strong focus on organisational learning and continuous improvement.
Karan takes an active role in local and national networks, supporting developments, collaboration and joint working.
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