On the move 28 January

Saba Sadiq (pictured) has joined The Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust (PAHT) as its new finance director. She has moved to the trust from East Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust, where she was deputy director of finance. She said: ‘I am delighted to be joining PAHT at this exciting and challenging time. I am looking forward to working with colleagues and system partners to drive forward our ambitions.’ PAHT chief executive Lance McCarthy added: ‘I am pleased that Saba has joined us at PAHT. She comes with a strong history of improvement in the NHS and a broad experience of working in both acute and community settings and in partnership across health and social care systems.’

Sue Hill (pictured) has been appointed substantive executive director of finance at Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board. She has been in the post in an acting capacity since April 2019 when Russell Favager moved to Mid Cheshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Ms Hill joined the health board in January 2019 as finance director – operational finance, and has previously been executive director of finance at Bridgewater Community Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust and deputy finance director at St Helens and Knowsley Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust.

Claire Finn has been appointed finance director of West Midlands Ambulance Service NHS Trust. She has moved from University Hospitals Birmingham NHS Foundation Trust, where she was director of operational finance.

Joel Harrison (pictured) has been appointed chief finance officer of North West Anglia NHS Foundation Trust. He was previously deputy director of finance at the trust, which he joined in 2018, and has been acting chief finance officer since May 2020. Prior to joining the trust, he worked at KPMG, NHS Improvement and the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Sustainability and Transformation Partnership. He is a graduate of the National Finance Talent Pool, and was a member of the first cohort of the programme.

NHS Fife has appointed Margo McGurk director of finance and strategy following a formal recruitment process. She previously served as the board’s interim director of finance and now also takes on the role as the board’s senior information risk officer. Ms McGurk has more than 20 years' experience in a range of finance roles across NHS Scotland, most recently at NHS24, and in the higher education sector. She succeeds Carol Potter, who was appointed NHS Fife chief executive last year.

Hounslow and Richmond Community Healthcare NHS Trust director of finance and corporate services David Hawkins has been appointed interim chief executive of the trust. An ACCA qualified accountant with 18 years’ experience across a range of NHS services, including providers, commissioners and community services.

Arden and GEM Commissioning Support Unit has appointed Mark Smith (pictured) director of finance. He will be responsible for all areas of corporate finance including maintaining strong financial controls, business planning, commercial strategy and partnership development. Mr Smith joins the CSU from Optum, where he was director of finance LPF, which was preceded by four years at North Derbyshire Clinical Commissioning Group, where his most recent post was acting chief officer and accountable officer. He succeeds director of finance and deputy managing director Gill Scoular, who is retiring after 40 years of service within the NHS.

Mark Barker (pictured) has been appointed to the new role of chief finance officer for the five clinical commissioning groups across mid and south Essex. The role is part of a streamlined executive team providing managerial leadership for the five organisations, collectively known as Mid and South Essex Clinical Commissioning Groups. He was previously CFO for South East Essex Clinical Commissioning Groups, and his appointment is a step in the transition of the five CCGs into an integrated care system.

Simon Wade is now director of finance and strategy at the Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in Swindon. He has more than 20 years’ experience at senior level in NHS finance and joined the trust from the Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, where he was deputy finance director.

Former auditor general for Scotland Caroline Gardner (pictured) was awarded a CBE for services to the Scottish public sector in the new year's honours list. She stepped down from her role at Audit Scotland last year after eight years in the post. Ms Gardner is a former president of CIPFA.