Trust chief leaves to head ICS

Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic Hospital Foundation Trust chief executive Mark Brandreth has been appointed as accountable officer for Shropshire, Telford and Wrekin Clinical Commissioning Group and will continue in his role as executive lead for the ICS. 

CCGs are expected to be abolished by April next year under proposed legislation, when most of their functions will be absorbed by ICSs.   

Mr Brandreth will take up the joint role in August when he officially steps down as chief for RJAH. He has led the trust for five years, and worked nationally for NHS England on ventilation supply during the start of the coronavirus pandemic. 

RJAH chief nurse Stacey Keegan will be acting chief executive from August. The trust has begun its recruitment process to find a permanent chief.

In a statement, Mr Brandreth said: “Working closely with colleague[s] in recent months, I have seen the passion and the desire to do things differently so that we can improve health outcomes and health inequalities for all of our population.”

Sir Neil McKay, STW ICS independent chair, said: “Mark has been appointed following a rigorous and competitive recruitment process, where he showed himself to be the outstanding candidate.

“He is an experienced and inclusive leader who knows our system inside out — both its strengths and its challenges.”

The majority of ICSs executive leads are managers with a commissioning background; but a number of provider trust chiefs have moved to the roles in recent months. These include Fiona Edwards in Frimley Health (on secondment), Kate Shields in Cornwall; and Rob Hurd in north central London.

This story was updated at 13:30 to reflect Mr Brandreth was appointed as CCG accountable officer.