26.03.19
Special measures trust appoints CQC advisor as new chief executive
An under-fire special measures trust has appointed a new chief executive, a week on from the departure of boss Antek Lejk.
Norfolk and Suffolk Foundation Trust (NSFT), reported as the worst performing mental health trust in the country following three separate ‘inadequate’ ratings from the CQC, has named Jonathan Warren as its new chief executive.
Warren, the former deputy chief executive and chief nursing officer at Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS FT, had already recently joined NSFT as the director of improvement.
He has worked at the trust for two years, and brings with him 35 years of experience in clinical and operational leadership in healthcare, including at the CQC.
Warren previously worked at the East London NHS FT where he led the work that saw the trust become the first mental health and community trust to achieve an ‘outstanding’ CQC rating.
NSFT chair, Marie Gabriel, said it was “really good news for the trust.”
“Jonathan is a widely respected and experienced clinical leader and senior manager. He is a specialist advisor to the CQC and the Mental Health Patient Safety Project.
“He also has a track record of leading improvement in the CQC scores within the organisations he works for and therefore knows what is needed to sustainably improve the quality of NSFT’s services and outcomes for our patients and their loved ones.”
Warren commented: “It’s a real honour to be appointed to this role. My focus will be on improving the quality of services and building upon what is already outstanding or good so there is a consistently high standard across the trust.
“I can only do this with the support of staff and the involvement of service users and carers in constructively improving care.”
Last week, Antek Lejk announced he was stepping down from the trust to join the East London NHS FT and said he believes that NSFT “will benefit from a new vision and leadership.”
He added: ‘I’d like to thank my predecessor Antek Lejk for beginning to lay the groundwork over the past year. I intend to build upon that and quicken the pace so that everyone in Norfolk and Suffolk receives the services they should expect and deserve.”