'Dedicated' former medical director among Sri Lanka dead

Sally Bradley joined Pennine Acute Hospitals Trust as deputy medical director in 2009, and was promoted to medical director in 2011. She stepped down from the role in 2012, when she emigrated to Australia. She was killed along with her husband Bill Harrop, an ex-firefighter, when a suicide bomber attacked the Cinnamon Grand Hotel in the capital Colombo.

Dr Bradley was also Manchester Primary Care Trust’s director of public health from 2007 to 2009. In her role at the PCT, Dr Bradley, a GP, worked closely with the Manchester joint health unit set up by Manchester City Council and the local NHS. 

Dr Bradley’s other senior roles included medical director of Community Healthcare Bolton and being a GP principal in Salford.

She was also the sister of former Labour MP for Withington Lord Bradley. Lord Bradley has been instrumental in health policy, serving on the health committee during his time as an MP. He is also a former chair of The Christie Foundation Trust and is a non-executive director at Pennine Care FT. 

A statement released by her family, reported by the Manchester Evening News, said: “Dr Bradley was a kind, loyal and hardworking woman that lived for adventure.

“She was the personification of joy that life could bring if you approached it with a smile on your face and warmth in your heart. She dedicated her professional life to public service and was a true daughter of Greater Manchester.”

The newspaper also reported Lord Bradley as saying: “This immensely tragic event will be something my family will never truly get over. I have lost a sister, who was not only an inspiration to me, but someone that was respected and loved across Greater Manchester.”

Latest reports place the death toll from the eight explosions at churches and hotels in Columbo at 321 people with about 500 people estimated to be wounded. 

A version of this article first appeared in Local Government Chronicle