Farewell to Frank Griffiths, our Trust Chairman

Our Trust has said a fond farewell to Frank Griffiths who stepped down from his post as Chair on Friday 31 March.

Frank was appointed to the role by our Council of Governors in April 2010, following his retirement as the Deputy Vice Chancellor of Leeds Metropolitan University. He brought with him a wealth of experience in education and the charitable sector, and a passion for improving mental health and learning disabilities services.

During his seven-year tenure, Frank led our Board of Directors and our Council of Governors through an era of significant change both for our Trust and for the wider health and social care economy.

On his departure, Frank said: “I thank my colleagues on the Board and the Council of Governors for their support throughout my time here and especially the Trust’s dedicated staff all of whom work tirelessly and are committed to delivering the best possible healthcare.

“I have every confidence that the Trust will continue to develop its services and improve on the already high quality of care it provides. I look forward to keeping a close eye on its future achievements and wish the staff and management team every success in the coming years.”

Frank’s time at our Trust was celebrated on Thursday 30 March at a special event at the Foodworks Cafe in The Becklin Centre, where Chief Executive Dr Sara Munro, service users and staff came together to thank Frank and wish him well for the future (pictured below left).

Sara Munro, said: “Frank has led our organisation through significant changes and improvements in care, particularly in service transformation and patient safety. He has nationally championed our Trust, our service users and our staff at every turn though his work with the Mental Health Network and NHS Providers. His passion for mental health and learning disability services, coupled with his total dedication to patient care has allowed him to make an outstanding contribution to the organisation. On behalf of our Trust, I would like to thank him for his hard work and support and wish him well for the future.”

Our Trust has appointed Professor Sue Proctor as our new Chair. Sue is currently the Vice Chair of Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust. She will take over from Frank in April.