Northumbria Healthcare appoints new chair

Northumbria Healthcare has appointed Sir Paul Ennals CBE as the new chair of the board of directors.

Sir Paul brings vast leadership experience from large, complex organisations at both a national and local level. His experience ranges from chief executive roles with successful national organisations to chairing influential multi-agency partnerships over a 25-year period.

His professional career has been spent largely within services for vulnerable children and adults, mainly based in London, particularly leading national children’s organisations. This included playing a key role in steering the Government’s Every Child Matters programme during the 2000s.

Now based in North Tyneside he was awarded a CBE in 2002 for services to children with special educational needs and was knighted in 2009 for services to children.

In the past few years he has chaired 6 multi-agency safeguarding boards for children and vulnerable adults, holding the relevant hospital trusts and other agencies to account for their safeguarding activity.

Sir Paul is currently chair the North East England Climate Coalition (NEECCo), Fareshare North East, and is also President of the Voluntary Organisations Network North East.

He will replace Professor Alan Richardson who has been chair of the trust since 2016.

Sir Paul Ennals CBE said:

“It is a real privilege to be able to help lead this outstanding organisation and I am very excited by the potential of the trust to become even more ambitious and successful in the future.

“Chairing multi-agency partnerships is in my blood and I hope to bring my experience of joining up services beyond organisational boundaries to this important role. There are huge opportunities for better integration of health and social care services across the NHS and for a greater role of the NHS in helping people to remain well.”
Chief executive Sir James Mackey said:

“We’re looking forward to welcoming Sir Paul to Northumbria and helping us move the organisation to the next stage. He brings a strong track record of innovation and leadership combined with a passionate commitment to the development of our health and social services locally.

“We’re really focused on the impact we can make to people living and working in our local communities so Sir Paul’s experience will be key to the delivery of our new five year strategy and future thinking around health and care services in the area.

“I’d also like to pay a huge tribute to our departing chair Professor Alan Richardson who has played such a big role in our recent success not least our second Outstanding rating from the CQC and steering the board through the pandemic.”