NELFT is pleased to announce the appointment of four new Non-Executive Directors (NEDs) to our board following a robust recruitment process.

Deborah Wheeler, Janet Wood, Jasbir Sandhu and Zaeem Haq will bring a wealth of experience from different sectors to NELFT and will begin their roles immediately. 

As NEDs, they will provide invaluable expertise and join the rest of the board in its collective responsibility for the Trust’s strategy and culture.

About Deborah:

Deborah is an expert in nursing and healthcare delivery in the NHS. She qualified as an orthopaedic nurse in 1986 and has served in various NHS Trusts where she worked her way up to the very top of the nursing profession. In 1989, Deborah took a senior nurse position at the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital and nine years later was appointed as the Chief Nurse and Acting Chief Executive.  Since then, Deborah has held top nursing positions at a variety of Trusts, as well as director roles at NHS England and UCL Partners.

After retiring in 2019 as Executive Director of Nursing & Midwifery from North Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust, Deborah was recalled by the Trust to be part of the senior nursing team during the COVID-19 pandemic. She is also a NED and Vice Chair (Bedfordshire & Luton) for East London NHS Foundation Trust.

About Janet:

Janet Wood is a chartered accountant and is currently Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee at Essex Partnership University Trust, since 2017. Janet advises the Chief Finance Officer and the senior finance leadership team on planning and performance management matters. She has previously worked for Deloitte Edinburgh and Redbridge Health DMU, as well as South Essex Health Authority.

She served as a Non-Executive Director at South Essex Partnership Trust, acting as Vice Chair of the Trust until 2017. She also acted as Chair for nine months.

About Jasbir:

Jasbir Sandhu brings extensive financial experience from the private sector and local authorities. She is Chief Finance Officer at Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation, since 2019. She also has previous experience in senior finance positions at LB Newham, Capita, LB Tower Hamlets, and Greater London Authority.

Jasbir has previous board experience at the London Borough of Redbridge, Solace Women’s Aid, London Pension Fund Authority, and Goram Homes.

About Zaeem:

Zaeem is an international health expert and currently Global Director of Medical Services at Save the Children International, providing strategic leadership and governance oversight on clinical and pharmacy services to 30 countries. He established and co-chaired a Quality of Care working group with UNICEF and USAID.

Apart from several advisory roles within Save the Children, Zaeem held non-executive roles as Technical Advisory Board Member for the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, Trustee for the British Refugee Council and as Associate Non-Executive Director for the Norfolk Community Health & Care Trust.