New hospital chief executive joins latest board appointments
Several board appointments have been made across Barts Health as Cathy Jones is appointed chief executive of Newham Hospital, and Dr Farah Elahi is appointed as an associate non-executive director.
We are pleased to announce that Cathy Jones has been appointed as the next chief executive of Newham Hospital, following an open, competitive recruitment process. She is set to take on her new role from 4 January 2027, succeeding Simon Ashton following his move to lead one of the country's largest NHS ambulance services.
Dr Liat Sarner, consultant and medical director, is acting up as interim chief executive for Newham Hospital.
Cathy joins Barts Health from Bedford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, where she was appointed as their deputy chief executive of the Trust following its merger in 2020. Previously, Cathy had been the deputy chief executive of Luton & Dunstable Hospital since 2018, having joined the Trust in 2007, and has held various general management posts in the divisions of Medicine and Surgery.
After completing her BSc in Physiology at the University of Liverpool, Cathy started her NHS career as an information analyst working for shared services in Hertfordshire, following which she spent three years at Northampton General Hospital working in Service Development, demonstrating her interest in service improvement and transformation.
On the appointment, Cathy said:
“It is an honour to be joining Barts Health as chief executive for Newham Hospital. I have always felt that there is something very special about working in a district general hospital, where we provide essential care right in the heart of our communities and see the very real difference our teams make every single day.
“During my visits to the hospital and conversations with staff and local partners, I have been struck by the incredible energy, positivity and inclusivity in Newham and am very much looking forward to joining in the New Year and continuing the brilliant work that Simon and the team have been doing.”
Shane DeGaris, group chief executive, said:
“I am delighted that Cathy has accepted the role of chief executive of Newham Hospital. Cathy brings a wealth of NHS leadership experience across acute hospital services and will be an asset to Newham and our wider group.
“I would also like to thank Simon for his leadership and contribution to Newham Hospital over the past few years and wish him every success in his new role.”
We are also pleased to welcome Dr Farah Elahi as an associate non-executive director to our trust board who will replace the role that Sarah Teather is vacating on 1 December 2026.
Farah is an established healthcare leader and academic, bringing a breadth of experience having worked across London, the South East and the West Midlands, in the NHS, Local Authority, Civil Service, Higher Education and the Voluntary Sector. She holds a PhD in Health Sciences and recently completed her MSc in Digital Health Leadership.
She is currently a senior leader at Slough Borough Council, where she provides high impact system leadership in delivering the Neighbourhood Health portfolio across Slough.
As a community associate non-executive director, Farah brings her healthcare leadership expertise combined with her research skills, community experience and knowledge as a local resident, and is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of the North East London population.
We also have a number of further changes to our non-executive director roles.
Kim Kinnaird, chair of the audit and risk committee, leaves at the end of November 2026 and we thank her for her service over the last seven years and wish her well for the future. Sarah Teather, currently an associate non-executive director will step up into the non-executive director role Kim is vacating. Helen Spice will take over as chair of the audit and risk committee.
Hilary Thomas, chair of the quality assurance committee, will be leaving us in the next few months to take up a role as the chair of East Kent Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Work will begin soon to recruit a replacement for her. We wish Hilary good luck for her new role.