​​​​​​​Joint Croydon Health Services Chief Executive and Place-Based Leader for health appointed to transform health care in one of London’s largest boroughs | Trust news

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​​​​​​​Joint Croydon Health Services Chief Executive and Place-Based Leader for health appointed to transform health care in one of London’s largest boroughs

Croydon is at the national forefront in announcing that Matthew Kershaw has been appointed as joint Trust CEO and Place Based Leader for health, heading up a new partnership of NHS organisations working together to improve the care and wellbeing of people in one of London’s largest and most diverse boroughs. 

The appointment between NHS Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and Croydon Health Services NHS Trust means that for the first time there will be a single leader responsible for the planning and provision of hospital and community services across the borough providing more joined-up care, in line with the ambitions of the NHS Long Term Plan.

Confirming the announcement, Mike Bell, Chairman of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust said:

“Matthew’s appointment to lead both the Trust and our new place based health structures is the latest development in our commitment to wrap our services around the neighbourhoods we serve, for the benefit of those living in the borough. This role, and the partnership with the CCG that it represents, provides the essential platform for our ambitious discussions with local partners to bring together all parts of the local health and social care system.

“With almost 30 years of experience leading the improvement of many NHS Trusts and more recently working on integrated care across the country, Matthew has the insight, knowledge and aptitude needed to bring the Trust and CCG together and make the most of the expertise we have in the borough. We want to give our staff more freedom to work collectively to deliver more joined-up care and reduce duplication to maximise our investment on the frontline.”

Dr Agnelo Fernandes, Chair of NHS Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group and a local GP said: 

“The exciting nature of this job is the first of its kind and puts Croydon at the forefront for how the NHS is changing to meet the healthcare needs of the communities we care for. We are building on our track record of success working with partners, through the One Croydon Alliance. 

“While the CCG and Croydon Health Services Trust remain separate statutory bodies, by jointly appointing Matthew this will support the alignment of our two organisations and focus our work on our common purpose.  Together our joint ambition is to improve quality and patient care for the people of Croydon, whilst ensuring financial rigour and creating a stronger more consistent voice for health across the borough.”  

Matthew said:

“It’s a huge privilege to take up this opportunity to better integrate health care in the borough at such an exciting time. We are already making great progress by bringing some of our health services together and working side-by-side with the local authority, GPs, mental health services and voluntary groups, we are looking to do more to meet the needs of our different neighbourhoods across Croydon. 

“As a partnership, we want to deliver the best for our patients and our staff both in the community and in hospital, as well as improving the future health of the people living in Croydon.”

Today’s announcement follows proposals by the Trust and CCG in May 2019 to work closer together to ensure the best possible spend for the Croydon pound and free-up resources to support further quality improvements on the frontline. 

Councillor Tony Newman, Leader of Croydon Council, said: 

“Croydon is a great place to live and work, but for too long it has suffered from deep health inequalities. Matthew’s welcome appointment as our first Place Based Leader provides an exciting opportunity for us all to work together to transform the health, well-being and life chances of those from our most excluded communities and make a lasting difference to tackling health inequalities.

“As partners, Croydon Council and the local NHS have the shared goal to improve the health and care for people in our community. No one organisation can do this alone and the more we can work together the better to care for our growing population and create a healthier Croydon.”  

Matthew has been the interim Chief Executive at Croydon Health Services NHS Trust since October 2018. He will take up his new role as Chief Executive and Place Based Leader (Health) on 1 October 2019.  

On this date Sarah Blow, current Accountable Officer for the five other South West London CCGs, will become the Interim Accountable Officer for NHS Croydon CCG.

Sarah replaces Andrew Eyres, the current NHS Croydon CCG Accountable Officer, whose appointment as Place Based Leader for Lambeth as Strategic Director, Integrated Health and Care for NHS Lambeth CCG and the London Borough of Lambeth, was announced in July.

In parallel the six CCGs in South West London are considering proposals to merge by April 2020. As part of this, health leaders are discussing arrangements to ensure that maximum resources relating to care in Croydon are delegated to the borough, with partners retaining control of decisions affecting the borough.  

Amongst Matthew’s early tasks will be the creation of a single executive leadership team between the Trust and CCG. This builds upon the recent joint appointment of a Chief Nurse for Croydon and Executive Director of Midwifery and Allied Health Professionals (May 2019). This was the first executive management post shared across the Trust and CCG.

Both organisations also share a joint Chief Pharmacist for Croydon. This joint clinical role between the Trust and CCG has been the forerunner for closer integration providing more seamless care for local people between hospital, community and primary care services and has saved management time and money.


Background

 

Matthew Kershaw’s biography:

Matthew Kershaw is currently the interim Chief Executive of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust and is also a Senior Visiting Fellow at The King’s Fund, a health think-tank, where he has played a key role in its work with health and care organisations to develop integrated care that better meets the needs of patients and service-users. 

He has more than 26 years of NHS experience and has held a number of senior leadership roles, most recently as Chief Executive of East Kent Hospitals University Foundation Trust where he led the Trust out of Quality Special Measures. Prior to this, Matthew was Chief Executive of Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals NHS Trust for three years securing £500m capital to redevelop the Sussex County Hospital.  

He has worked nationally at the Department of Health, including developing the delivery plan for the 18-week waiting time target and being the first trust special administrator. 

His career has also seen him work with the Care Quality Commission, Health Education England, and the Kent Cancer Alliance, where he chaired the Kent Surrey and Sussex Clinical Research Network.

 

The One Croydon Alliance partners are: Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, Croydon Clinical Commissioning Group, Croydon Council, the Croydon GP Collaborative, South London and the Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust, and Age UK Croydon. 

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