Our Board

Chairman/Chief Executive

Neil Large

Chairman

Neil is an accountant by profession with a diverse NHS career spanning 45 years in the North West - including Board, Executive and Non-Executive Director appointments over the last 20 years.

After retiring from his last position as Finance Director of the former Cheshire & Merseyside Strategic Health Authority, Neil joined the board of Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital as an Associate Non-Executive Director. He was then appointed Non-Executive Director in October 2007, Acting Chair in August 2009 and Chair in October 2009.

Neil is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy

Neil is involved in local health related charities around Chester where he lives and his hobbies include golf, gardening and the gym.

Neil was awarded an MBE for services to the NHS in The Queen's New Year's Honours 2017.

Jane Tomkinson

Chief Executive

Jane Tomkinson, former Director of Finance at NHS North of England, took up the role as Chief Executive at Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital in October 2013.

Jane joined the NHS in 1990 and has held a number of positions in acute trusts, including Director of Finance at the Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and subsequently being appointed the Trust’s Deputy Chief Executive in 2005. Two years later, she was awarded the prestigious ‘Finance Director of the Year’ award by the Healthcare Financial Management Association.

In 2011 she moved to NHS North West as Director of Finance, before taking on the NHS North of England lead finance role a year later.

Jane holds CPFA and MBA qualifications, and was awarded an OBE for services to NHS finance in the Queen's New Year's Honours in 2016.

Non-Executive Directors (NEDs)

Nicholas Brooks

Non-Executive Director

Nicholas Brooks qualified in medicine at St Bartholomew’s Hospital, London and trained in cardiology at St Bartholomew’s, St George’s and the London Chest Hospitals. He was consultant cardiologist to the University Hospital of South Manchester NHS Foundation Trust from 1984 to 2014.

He has served as president of the British Cardiovascular Society, on the Council of the Royal College of Physicians and as chairman of the UK national training committee – the Specialist Advisory Committee in Cardiology. He has published 70 research papers in addition to editorials and reviews, reports on cardiac services in the United Kingdom and two book chapters.

Throughout his career he has been closely involved in medical education, training and assessment both at the national and wider European levels.

Julian Farmer

Non Executive Director and Deputy Chair and Senior Independent Director

Julian has spent the majority of his career in the public sector in a wide variety of finance and audit roles.

Soon after qualifying as a Chartered Accountant he took up a senior audit role within local government. He then moved into the Audit Commission where he was involved in a wide range of assignments concerning financial and corporate governance issues affecting the local government and health sectors.

Whilst at the Audit Commission he was the appointed statutory external auditor for a large number of public sector bodies, many of them being health service commissioners and providers. Following the demise of the Audit Commission and the outsourcing of its work, Julian was appointed a director of Grant Thornton UK Llp, a post he held until his retirement in 2013.

Julian's hobbies include golf, reading and model making. He has two children and six grandchildren.

Karen O'Hagan

Non-Executive Director

Karen joined Liverpool Heart and Chest Hospital as a Non Executive Director in May 2019.

She brings a wealth of experience from her current role as Director of Customer Services Europe for ConvaTec Group, a global medical products and technologies company.

Karen has also served previously as a Non Executive Director and Vice Chair with Liverpool Community Health Trust.

Margaret Carney

Non-Executive Director

Margaret brings with her a wealth of experience having worked in local government since 1979 in a number of roles including as the Director of Finance and Corporate Resources at Warrington Council, Executive Director of Corporate Resources, Strategic Partnerships and Health and Care at Rochdale Council and CEO at Sefton Council for ten years. Margaret retired in 2019 and has since continued her work as a Non Executive Director with public, voluntary and private sector organisations, and is currently Vice Chair of a social care provider organisation.

Professor Bob Burgoyne

Non-Executive Director

Bob has spent his career in academia pursuing research in Biomedical Sciences and undertaking a variety of leadership roles.

Bob retired from the University of Liverpool at the end of 2017 after 34 years and is currently an Emeritus Professor in the University.

Throughout this period he led a research team publishing over 360 research papers based on many national and international collaborations and was elected a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.

He has held various senior leadership positions within the University most latterly as Executive Pro-Vice Chancellor for Health and Life Sciences. He also served as a Non Executive Director at the Royal Liverpool and Broadgreen University Hospital NHS Trust.