Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Angela Wendzicha

Joint Director of Corporate Affairs

Chris Thickett

Director of Finance

Chris is an ACCA qualified accountant and has a BA (Hons) in Financial Services from Northumbria University. He joined the Trust in January 2016 as Deputy Director of Finance, and became Director of Finance in April 2019. He has worked in the NHS in senior finance roles at Calderdale and Huddersfield, and Leeds and York Partnerships. Prior to moving into the NHS he has worked in the private sector and in private practice accountancy. He is from Barnsley and passionate about working within the NHS. Chris strongly believes that finance has a key role to play in shaping both organisational and system strategy to drive forward change, and ensuring that sustainable services can be sourced locally.

Dr James Griffiths

Interim Medical Director

Dr James Taylor

Chief Operating Officer

James brings extensive clinical and operational leadership experience to Barnsley, having previously served as Deputy Chief Operating Officer at Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, where he also led Planned Care services. Originally trained as a consultant in anaesthesia, critical care and pain management, James combines a strong clinical background with a proven track record in operational delivery. He has led a range of transformation programmes focused on improving service resilience, enhancing patient experience, and increasing the quality and efficiency of care. His leadership approach focuses on collaboration, continuous improvement, and ensuring services are responsive to both patient and staff needs.

Dr Simon Enright

Medical Director

Simon became Managing Director in August 2026. He completed his medical training in Leeds, and has been a consultant in intensive care medicine and anaesthesia for over 20 years. His wealth of experience extends to working in a number of hospitals nationwide. Simon has held a number of clinical management roles both internally and externally. He started his management career some 20 years ago as clinical director of ICU services. He subsequently became Clinical Director for theatres and anaesthesia.

Emma Parkes

Director of Marketing and Communications

Sarah Moppett

Chief Nurse

Sarah has over 30 years nursing experience including previous board level nursing roles. She undertook her nurse training in Surrey. Sarah then moved to Nottingham where she completed the majority of her clinical experience including roles as a Ward Sister and Nurse Specialist. Sarah has a Master’s Degree in Healthcare Leadership and is an Honorary Associate Professor of the University of Nottingham. Prior to joining Barnsley Hospital, Sarah held the post of Director of Recovery and Care Excellence at South Warwickshire University Foundation Trust. Sarah is passionate about care excellence and her leadership has been recognised with regional and national awards. She is married and has two daughters.

Steve Ned

Director of People

Steve was appointed Chief People Officer at Barnsley Hospital in 2023, having worked as Joint Director of Workforce for Barnsley Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust since 2019. He was previously Director of Workforce at Sheffield Children’s Hospital and is a very experienced HR professional. Steve has more than 30 years NHS experience, and over 10 years working in senior roles within South Yorkshire. In addition, Steve has been involved at a national level on a number of key workforce issues.

Tom Davidson

Director of ICT

Alison Knowles

Chair of the Finance & Performance Committee

Alison worked in healthcare and the NHS for 30 years including 17 years at Director level across a range of hospitals, commissioning organisations and regional bodies. Her last working role was as the NHS England Locality Director for South Yorkshire & Bassetlaw when she worked closely with the Trust and its leadership team. She has extensive experience of assurance and governance, planning and strategy development and partnership working across the South Yorkshire area which informs her work with the Board. Alison retired from full-time working at the end of 2022 to provide care for her husband. She is passionate about bringing this experience to her work with the Board to ensure that the important role of carers is recognised fully in how the hospital delivers its services including supporting staff who are carers in their home lives. In addition to her role at Barnsley, Alison is a non-executive director for a housing association which works across South Yorkshire including in Barnsley to provide and improve social housing for local people. Alison is Chair of the Finance & Performance Committee and a member of the Audit Committee.

David Plotts

Chair of Barnsley Facilities Services (BFS)

David joined the Board in October 2021. Prior to this position he has held a number of senior executive roles for both large and medium sized corporate MedTech businesses. This included Covidien Plc, Aerocrine AB and Healthcare 21 Group, in a career stretching over 26 years within the UK and European Medical Device Industry. David serves as Chair of the Trust’s wholly owned subsidiary, Barnsley Facilities Services (BFS). David, who has lived for the past 30 years in the immediate area of Barnsley hospital, is also a trustee on the board of High Green Development Trust. High Green Development Trust supports enterprise development, children, those with disabilities, and sports and arts for the communities of North Sheffield and South Barnsley. David attends the Finance and Performance and Audit Committees. David’s current term of office runs until 31 December 2028. He is also Chair of Barnsley Facilities Services.

Dr Gary Francis

Chair of the Quality and Governance Committee

Gary qualified as a doctor in 1979. He specialised in anaesthesia and became a consultant in Sheffield (in Neuroanaesthesia and Intensive Care) in 1991. After performing various management roles and qualifying with management degrees, Gary pursued a leadership pathway. He was appointed Executive Medical Director at Aintree University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, working there from 2010 to 2015. Between 2015 and 2018 Gary took a leadership role in Qatar. Gary assisted the government in developing the infrastructure and governance for the appointment of circa 10,000 medical and clinical staff, in preparation for the 2022 World Cup. Upon his return from the Middle East, Gary established a consultancy and undertook a number of interim roles prior to, and during, the pandemic. Gary is the Chair of the Quality and Governance Committee and a member of the People Committee, and his term of office runs until 31 December 2028.

Kevin Clifford OBE

Vice Chair of the Board

Retiring from the role of Chief Nurse at Sheffield Clinical Commissioning Group in August 2016, Kevin had held a range of Nursing and General Management posts in the NHS spanning over 38 years. Including, Chief Operating Officer for Sheffield PCTs Provider (Community) Services, and both Clinical Director of Operations and Nurse Director (Emergency Care) at Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Kevin’s contribution to nursing was recognised in the 2018 New Year’s Honours when he was awarded an OBE for his services. Kevin is the Vice Chair, Chair of the People Committee and a member of the Quality and Governance Committee. He also serves as a Non-Executive Director on the Board of Barnsley Facilities Service. Kevin’s current term of office runs until 29 November 2026.

Nicky Clarke

Non-Executive Director

Nicky is currently a Non-Executive Director for the Advancing Quality Alliance, and the Chief of People at the Northern Care Alliance NHS Foundation Trust (since Sept 2019). Previously she was Director of HR at Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (2015-19), Director of Workforce and OD at Chesterfield Royal NHS Foundation Trust (2013-15), Senior HR Interim at Rolls Royce PLC, Interim Head of HR Shared Services at Gala Coral Group, and held a range of roles across Boots including Director of Leadership and OD, Director of HR for Support Office and Supply Chain, Director HR for Stores, and Head of Talent Management for stores. Nicky was previously a Trustee for First Steps ED, and Vice Chair of Nottingham Trent University. Nicky is a member of the Finance and Performance Committee and People Committee. Her current term of office runs until 31 May 2027.

Stephen Radford

Senior Independent Director & Chair of the Audit Committee

Stephen joined the Board in October 2021. He is a qualified accountant. He has over 30 years of private and public sector experience gained across multiple sectors in the UK and internationally. Prior to this position, he was Associate Non-Executive Director at Mid Yorkshire Hospitals NHS Trust, and has held other roles including Group and Divisional Finance Director, Head of Shared Services, Senior Vice President and Partner / Director roles in global management consultancies. Stephen lives locally in the Penistone area. Stephen is the Senior Independent Director , Chair of the Audit Committee and a member of the Finance & Performance Committee. His term of office will run until 10 October 2027.