Board of Trustees and Patrons

Phil Corrigan joined our Board of Trustees in January 2020 and is Chair of Trustees.

Phil is former Chief Executive of NHS Leeds Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG).

Phil started her nursing career in 1982 and worked in a range of clinical areas such as intensive care, surgical services and older people’s services in Leeds. She then moved into a research, audit and educational role, co-writing two books on improving the quality of care in the NHS. She was director of nursing in an acute trust and then moved to a primary care trust (PCT) in Bradford as director of community services and nursing.

She joined Leeds PCT in 2006 and in 2009 was appointed as director of commissioning/director of nursing, leading on transformation, performance and improving quality of care for three years. She was chief executive of NHS Leeds West CCG from April 2012 to March 2018, when she became chief executive of NHS Leeds CCG.

Dr Jon Smith joined our Board of Trustees in January 2020 and is Deputy Chair of the Board.

Jon has PhD Molecular Biology, BSc (Hons) Biochemistry, MBChB (Leeds), MRCGP, PGCert Palliative Care, PGCert Primary Care Education.

He trained as a GP in North Yorkshire. His interests are palliative care and musculoskeletal medicine. With Dr O’Hare he recently became a trainer and runs the education of doctors and nurses within the practice. In his spare time he is slightly obsessed with skiing, runs and plays tennis. With a young family his specialist interests are rapidly becoming Lego and Bob the builder.

Hilary joined our board of trustees in January 2017.

Hilary has over twenty years of experience in the private sector, having worked in sales, marketing, retail, performance improvement, and business, product and team development in UK and internationally. Using these skills and experience, Hilary went on to start her own business focused on the not-for-profit sector working with major charities and other service providers.

Hilary has a personal connection with St Gemma’s as her Dad was looked after by the St Gemma’s community and IPU teams and she is part of the board to give something back.

Hilary is a dog owner and enjoys walking. Other hobbies include cooking, socialising and reading.

Sister Anne Hammersley is a member of the Sisters of the Cross and Passion Provincial Leadership Team.

She is Retreat Director of The Briery Retreat Centre in Ilkley and until recently was also Assistant Chaplain, at Leeds Trinity University.  She worked for two years in the Sisters of the Cross and Passion project in Lunca de Sus, Romania, returning to The Briery in 2001.

Prior to being on the Retreat Team at The Briery, she was on the Youth Retreat Team at Damacus House, Mill Hill, London for two years, a ministry she undertook after completing her Bachelor of Divinity at Heythrop College, London in 1994.

Sr Carmel Gorman is a member of the Sisters of the Cross and Passion, the founders of St Gemma’s Hospice.

Barry joined our Board of Trustees in March 2020.

He is an Anglican priest who has many years working in education both for the church and in colleges and universities. He has a long term interest in, and commitment to the work of the hospice movement, and was for ten years an associate lecturer with the Open University when it was pioneering work in the field of end of life care and bereavement support.

More recently he has been involved in theological education working on courses offered by Durham University. He also supports parishes where there is no permanent priest.

He was delighted to be appointed to the Board and he hopes, especially, to support the development and broad understanding of the Hospice’s provision of Spiritual Care.

Sir Alex Markham is Professor of Medicine and was Director of the MRC Medical Bioinformatics Centre in Leeds and joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in April 2021.

He has made various contributions to medical science, is a physician and pathologist, and trained initially in medicinal chemistry. His commercial experience includes cancer drug development and the introduction of DNA Fingerprinting for medico-legal applications (Queen’s Award for Technological Achievement in 1990).

A Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences, Alex served as Chairman of the National Cancer Research Institute (NCRI) establishing the National Cancer Intelligence Network. He was a member of the UK Clinical Research Collaboration Board and the National Institute of Health Research Advisory Board. He has chaired numerous MRC, BHF and Wellcome Trust Committees and was a Trustee of Arthritis Research UK. He chaired the Translational Medicine Board for MRC and NIHR under the auspices of the Treasury’s Office for Strategic Coordination of Health Research (OSCHR), and now chairs the OSCHR Health Informatics Group. He is chairman of the Lister Institute of Preventive Medicine.

Professor Markham was Chief Executive of Cancer Research UK. He received a knighthood in the 2008 New Year’s Honours for services to medicine. He has been a non-executive director of the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), the Medicines Discovery Catapult, Health Data Research UK and UK Biobank. He also contributes to numerous European oncology initiatives, including Germany’s Consortium for Translational Cancer Research and their National Center for Tumour Diseases.

Kim joined our board of trustees in October 2021 and is a member of the Finance and Business Committee. Kim was born, raised, and has lived all her life in Leeds. She is married with a daughter and a son.

She is a qualified accountant and has worked for the NHS for almost 42 years. During this time Kim has held senior managerial positions in finance, planning and general management, mainly working in the hospitals in Leeds. For the past 4 years Kim has worked as the Finance lead for the formal collaboration between the six acute hospital trusts in West Yorkshire and Harrogate.

Since 2009, Kim has been the Vice-chair of the Patient Access Schemes Expert Panel for the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE).

Dr Eileen Burns joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in July 2022.

Eileen has been a Consultant Physician at LTHT since 1992.She has undertaken regional work regarding Long Term Conditions and advised the Strategic Health Authority and Department of Health on Older People’s Care.

Eileen has undertaken significant research, education and academic work in End of Life Care for Frail Older People (2020) and was the President of the British Geriatric Society (2026-2018). She is currently a National Specialty Advisor for Older People Centred Integrated Care.

Jackie joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in July 2022.

Jackie is currently Director of Nursing in Barnsley Hospital Foundation Trust. She has previously been a trustee for 5 years at Overgate Hospice in Halifax.

Jackie is an improvement facilitator at the Improvement Academy and is Chief Nurse for South Yorkshire Integrated Care System.

Brigid joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in July 2022.

Brigid retired as Chief Nurse to Barnsley CCG in 2018. She then worked as an Independent Consultant for a short while as well as being a Bank Nurse with St Gemma’s and Leeds Community Trust.

Brigid has significant clinical and palliative care experience, and was also Head of Patient Experience at Lancashire Hospital.

Bassem joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in September 2023.

Bassem studied forensic science at university before deciding to pursue a career in commercial strategy. He started his career at Centrica, on their graduate program, and then spent several years in their various utility businesses, delivering customer-centric and value-driven growth strategies. Bassem now works for Sky as a Propositions lead, responsible for defining, launching and managing new broadband propositions.

Outside work, Bassem enjoys keeping fit, cycling and spending time with friends and family.

Lisa joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in September 2023.

Lisa has worked for the General Merchandise (GM) Business Unit within the Sainsbury’s commercial team for almost 6 years and holds the role of Director of Commercial Operations and Development. Within her role, Lisa is accountable for strategic development and value chain optimisation. She leads Sainsbury’s Asia operations, the Net Zero ‘Plan for Better’ environmental commitments and ensures GM sources and trades safely, legally and ethically. She’s also a Director for the Sainsburys Ireland business and a leadership coach.

Before joining Sainsbury’s, Lisa worked with other international retailers within the Seasonal, Home & Gifting categories, most recently Marks & Spencer, and has 25 years’ experience in the retail and supply sector.

Outside work, Lisa enjoys time with her teenage sons and dog alongside sunshine breaks and yoga.

Mukesh joined the St Gemma’s Board of Trustees in September 2023.

Mukesh is an accomplished business leader with over 30 years’ experience driving growth and innovation in the technology sector. As an Enterprise Growth Executive, he has expertise in helping businesses extract value from technology services and has a proven track record in areas like outsourcing, digital services, and Artificial Intelligence.

At IBM, Steria, Wipro, Atos, and Capgemini, Mukesh led high-performing sales teams and consistently exceeded revenue goals. He is now leveraging his extensive real-world experience to support small, medium enterprises and start-ups on their growth journeys.

Bishop Marcus Stock studied theology at Keble College, Oxford and subsequently trained for the priesthood at the Venerable English College in Rome. He was ordained to the priesthood in 1988 by the then Archbishop of Birmingham. From 1988 until 2009 Bishop Marcus served in a number of parishes within the Birmingham archdiocese.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s, Bishop Marcus was a Tutor in Theology for the Archdiocese of Birmingham and a teacher of Religious Education at the European School at Culham, in Oxfordshire. From 1995 to 1999, he was Assistant Director of Schools for the Archdiocese of Birmingham and then became Director of Schools from 1999 to 2009. From late 2011, until the spring of 2013, he was also the Acting Director of the Catholic Education Service.

In 2009, he moved to London when he became the General Secretary of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, a post he held at the time of his appointment to the Diocese of Leeds. He was appointed a Prelate of Honor by Pope Benedict XVI in 2012.

Bishop Marcus’ appointment to the See of Leeds by Pope Francis was announced by the Vatican in September 2014 and he was ordained Bishop and installed as the tenth Bishop of Leeds in the following month.

The Rt Revd Nick Baines became the first Anglican Bishop of Leeds for the Diocese of West Yorkshire & the Dales in June 2014.

Nick Baines was previously Bishop of Bradford (2011-14), and before that was Bishop of Croydon (in the Diocese of Southwark). He read German and French at Bradford University and, before ordination, worked for four years as a Russian linguist at GCHQ.

Bishop Nick is a fan of social media; he has over 10,000 followers on twitter (@nickbaines), and his own blog ‘Musings of a Restless Bishop’. He’s frequently asked to comment nationally on topical issues and is regularly heard on the Chris Evans Show on Radio 2 and Thought for the Day on Radio 4.

He has a keen interest in music, literature, art, film, theatre and football. He’s married to Linda (a health visitor and artist) and they have three adult children: Richard, Melanie and Andrew, and two grandchildren.

David Lascelles is the 8^th Earl of Harewood. He is a film and television producer and became the 8^th Earl, following his father’s death in 2012.

The Earl of Harewood is married to Diane Howse. After attending Art College in Exeter, Diane developed a professional career as an artist and sculptor. These days, the Countess of Harewood takes on the additional responsibility of being the curator of the art exhibitions at Harewood House.

The Earl has three children and five grandchildren.

Gerald was born in Cardiff. For the first ten years after graduating in medicine, he held appointments in a variety of clinical specialties, including National Service in the RAMC in Malta and a traineeship in general practice. His career then changed direction with two large epidemiological research projects, in Cardiff and in London, providing material for his Doctoral theses.

In 1967 he was appointed Director of the Social Paediatric and Obstetric Research Unit in Glasgow to study the health of children in that city and the use made of its obstetric services. He was also an adviser on child health to the Scottish Home and Health Department. A move to Leeds followed in 1973 to be Professor of Public Health Medicine in the University’s Medical School – a post that combined teaching, research (mainly into cancer) and development of his specialty in Yorkshire. Based on his experiences in Glasgow, he chose ‘Inequalities in Health’ as the subject of his public inaugural lecture. The post provided an opportunity to introduce epidemiology, general practice, ethics and palliative care into the medical undergraduate curriculum. He chaired the Leeds Medical Ethics Forum, the Committee on Facilities for the Disabled in the University and the Christian Council.

An invitation to chair the Yorkshire Task Group on the Care of the Dying led to an involvement in the hospice movement in general and St Gemma’s in particular, with membership of its Board, later chairmanship of the Trustees and, on retiring from those responsibilities, the honour of becoming a Patron of the hospice. During that time, he was an Adviser on Cancer Care to the World Health Organisation and continues to have a strong interest in the work of St Gemma’s.

Gerald is married to Geraldine who, until their marriage, was a surgical ward sister. They have two children and also two grandsons whose careers are providing great interest and satisfaction for their grandparents! Gerald is an active member of St Mark’s Church in Harrogate and served as Church Warden for seven years. He enjoys music and reading.

Arif is Head of PwC’s London region Assurance practice, providing audit and financial due diligence services to a range of clients across different sectors, and work with companies from FTSE 100, through AiM, private equity and privately owned.

After  studying Economics at Newcastle University, Arif joined PwC in Leeds in 1996. Since that time, he has worked in PwC’s offices in London, Leeds, and Chicago/Cleveland (US).  From 2013 – 2016 he was PwC’s Leeds office Senior Partner, leading the 700+ staff in this office.

He is a keen sports fan, with a passion for cricket as well as supporting Middlesbrough FC.

Arif served on our Board of Trustees for three years and we are delighted he is continuing his involvement with St Gemma’s as a Patron.

Tom was born and educated in North Yorkshire and graduated in Modern History from Trinity College, Oxford in 1989. After university, Tom joined the civil servant’s fast stream where he progressed through a variety of jobs, specialising in environmental policy.

On his return to Yorkshire, he set up the Regional Development Agency Yorkshire Forward, which he Chief Executive of in 2006, supporting 10,000 businesses during the recession, completing award-winning regeneration developments and pioneering low carbon initiatives.

Tom is a Patron in his personal capacity but he is currently Chief Executive of Leeds City Council. He took up this post in August 2010 and is the youngest Chief Executive in the history of the council.

Tom is a keen tweeter (@Tom Riordan). He is married to Louise and has two children and a dog called Bolt. In his free time Tom enjoys football and is an avid dominoes player.

Zulfi is an entrepreneur and philanthropist and is driven by making a big difference in everything that he does. Zulfi has significant experience of working with businesses and charities around the world. He is an international motivational speaker and ‘hands on’ practitioner in the areas of inspirational leadership, executive coaching & mentoring, equality & diversity, and social enterprise.

Zulfi is seen as an excellent role model for others and is an inspiring and tireless worker for charities. He believes each one of us can help change the world, so he turns his ‘vision into reality’, through his social enterprise, Global Promise, by educating and linking people across the social spectrum, around the world.

Ed Anderson is the Lord Lieutenant of West Yorkshire, having previously been the Deputy Lieutenant and also High Sheriff of West Yorkshire. He is also currently Chairman of National Savings & Investments and of the Airport Operators Association. He serves on the Council of the University of Leeds, is Pro Chancellor of Leeds Trinity University and serves on a number of other boards in the region. Ed was CEO of Leeds Bradford Airport for 10 years and Chairman of the Yorkshire Building Society for 8 years.

Ed has a long association with St Gemma’s, having been a trustee of the Hospice for 12 years and Vice Chairman of the board.

Marilyn Stowe was educated at Leeds Girls High School and the University of Leeds. She studied at The Hague Academy of International Law and lectured English law at the University of Le Mans France. As a solicitor she has held judicial office, which she resigned to head both general and advanced tiers of the Law Society’s Family Law Panel and she was also its Chief Examiner. She has twice been a member of legal advisory groups to the Law Commission advising on changes in family law to government. One of the first accredited family mediators in the UK she was also one of its first appointed Family Law Arbitrators. She was elected a Fellow of the prestigious International Academy of Family lawyers by her peers.

Marilyn founded and solely owned her family law firm, which she grew from a small office in Halton East Leeds into the largest family law firm in the UK. She sold it to private equity in 2017.

Passionate about justice, Marilyn is best known for obtaining pro bono the evidence which freed fellow solicitor Sally Clark from two murder convictions of her babies. This led directly to a major review and changes to the conduct of criminal and civil procedures in such cases.

Marilyn is married to Grahame Stowe, a Mental Health Tribunal Judge. They have one son, Benjamin, a family lawyer in London.

Henry became a Patron at the end of 2019.

A Chartered Accountant by training, Henry spent his working life in the SME he founded over 50 years ago. He has always been passionate about education and social care, serving as a Governor and Trustee of a number of local schools and educational charities, and having been a Trustee and Vice President of the Leeds Jewish Welfare Board, with responsibility for Moorcare (the care in the community arm of the board).

Henry is a prolific fundraiser for a number of local charities, having always believed that responsible charitable support is a key duty of all in an equitable society.

Henry lives with his wife Margaret in north Leeds, is an avid (though often frustrated) Leeds United fan. Between he and Margaret they have 4 sons, 4 amazing daughters in law, and 9 grandchildren.

Christine Talbot is the co-presenter of ITV Yorkshire’s Calendar News alongside Duncan Wood. Together they are the longest serving partnership in ITV regional news.

Christine has been a journalist for over thirty years, during which time she has covered many major new stories and interviewed everyone from Prime Ministers to celebrities. However, she says it is the ordinary people with extraordinary stories to tell that she enjoys meeting the most.

Christine regularly hosts events in Yorkshire and is a supporter of several local charities. She is married with one daughter and a stepson.

Duncan has co-presented the award-winning ITV Yorkshire news magazine programme Calendar since 2003. He was named Royal Television Society Presenter of the Year for Yorkshire in 2017.

His career in journalism began in regional newspapers before he wrote for the nationals, moved into radio, and joined ITV. He was North of England correspondent and a presenter for GMTV before settling in Yorkshire.

Duncan is married to Shirley and has one daughter. He’s passionate about all sports but golf’s his game – he almost turned professional at 16!

Dr. Edward Ziff OBE is Chairman & Chief Executive at Town Centre Securities PLC. Edward is a life-long supporter of the city of Leeds and plays an active role in the community through local charities.

Terry Bramall is a businessman and philanthropist, who served as the Chairman of Keepmoat. Together with his wife Liz, they set up the Liz and Terry Bramall Foundation. Terry was also selected as High Sheriff of Yorkshire for 2017-18.

Marilyn Stowe was educated at Leeds Girls High School and the University of Leeds. She studied at The Hague Academy of International Law and lectured English law at the University of Le Mans France. As a solicitor she has held judicial office, which she resigned to head both general and advanced tiers of the Law Society’s Family Law Panel and she was also its Chief Examiner.

She has twice been a member of legal advisory groups to the Law Commission advising on changes in family law to government. One of the first accredited family mediators in the UK she was also one of its first appointed Family Law Arbitrators. She was elected a Fellow of the prestigious International Academy of Family lawyers by her peers.

Marilyn founded and solely owned her family law firm, which she grew from a small office in Halton East Leeds into the largest family law firm in the UK. She sold it to private equity in 2017.

Passionate about justice, Marilyn is best known for obtaining pro bono the evidence which freed fellow solicitor Sally Clark from two murder convictions of her babies. This led directly to a major review and changes to the conduct of criminal and civil procedures in such cases.

Marilyn is married to Grahame Stowe, a Mental Health Tribunal Judge. They have one son, Benjamin, a family lawyer in London.

Chris is the husband of the inspiring Dr Kate Granger MBE, co-founder of the #hellomynameis campaign and Global Campaign Ambassador.

Chris explains:

“Hello, my name is Chris and I am the widower of Dr Kate Granger MBE who passed away at St Gemmas in July 2016 on our 11th wedding anniversary… Our lives were turned upside down around 6 and a half years ago when Kate was diagnosed with terminal cancer whilst we were holidaying in California.

Since that point we concertinaed our lives into a shorter period and crammed a huge amount into Kate’s time on this planet. Along the way we rose over £335,000 for good causes including St Gemmas, travelled the world, met many celebrities and royalty and started a global campaign that improves patient care through the basic message of introductions entitled #hellomynameis. Kate’s legacy is huge and her name will live on forever through her legacy and various awards named in her honour.

I am eternally grateful to everyone at St Gemma’s for how well they looked after Kate, myself and our family and friends over Kate’s last few weeks and since her passing. It is a wonderful place and I am proud to be an ambassador for them.”