Our Trustees

About Us menu

Remit

To provide robust governance to ensure that the Association is fulfilling its charitable aims.
To receive and approve an annual statement of accounts ahead of its presentation at the AGM.
To ensure a timely return to the Charities Commission.
To review and agree the Association’s strategy and assist the Executive Committee of Council with its development.
To formally approve recommendations from Council, ahead of their presentation at the AGM, for changes to the Constitution of the Association.

Appointment of the Board of Trustees

Executive members are Trustees by virtue of their post within the ACPGBI.
Non-Executive members – These were appointed at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on 9 October 2017 at which the revised Articles of Association and the revised Constitution of the Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland were adopted.
In the future, additional or replacement Trustees will be appointed by the Board of Trustees as they see fit.

Composition of the Board of Trustees

Executive members

Current President, Honorary Secretary and Honorary Treasurer

Non-Executive members

The Chair is elected from their membership by the Board of Trustees

Medical – at least five and ideally to include at least one nurse
(note: to avoid conflict of interest, non-Executive membership of the Board of Trustees would debar that member from sitting concurrently on the Council of the ACPGBI or on any of its committees. In the event that a non-Executive member of the Board of Trustees wished to sit on the ACPGBI Council or one of its committees, a period of one year would have to elapse after demitting office from the Board of Trustees before that member could do so.)

Lay (i.e. non-medically qualified individuals) – to include a minimum of two patient representatives, a lawyer, a trustee from a financial background and a non-medical academic.

Duration of appointment

Executive members – for the duration of their appointment on the Executive Committee
Non-Executive medical members – three years, renewable for a further three years.
Non-Executive lay members – three years, renewable for a further three years.

Trustees

	Tim Cooke ACPGBI Past Treasurer Tim Cook, Consultant General & Colorectal Surgeon Gloucestershire Royal Hospital

	Jon Bell Lay Member Jon Bell is the Chief Financial Officer of London North West Healthcare NHS Trust, a large integrated acute and community organisation that runs St Marks, Northwick Park, Ealing and Central Middlesex hospitals.

	Maria Bentley ACPGBI Patient Trustee Maria Bentley is a project manager from the North West of England. She lives in Manchester and has spent the last 8 years working for the General Medical Council, the UK’s medical regulator. Maria has Ulcerative Colitis and underwent a colectomy in 2017, which has left her with an ileostomy.

	Jennie Burch ACPGBI Trustee (ACPN) Jennie Burch has worked as a nurse in the NHS for over 30 years, with 25 years in St Mark’s Hospital, London. Jennie has worked as a clinical nurse specialist in stoma care and has published extensively on the topic. Jennie has also been involved in the National Enhanced Recovery Programme, helping to improve colorectal surgical recovery for patients and clinicians. Jennie is just completing her PhD where she has investigated bowel symptoms that occur following rectal cancer surgery.

	Anne Demick Lay Member Anne Demick, who is from Northern Ireland, is a recently retired director of a sales and marketing business.

	Sushil Maslekar ACPGBI Honorary Treasurer Consultant general surgeon specialising in hernia repair, haemorrhoid treatment, pelvic floor surgery and implant surgery for continence, colorectal surgery and keyhole surgery.

	Karen Nugent ACPGBI Past President Karen Nugent is a colorectal surgeon with an interest in pelvic floor disorders and anal cancer. She works as an Honorary Consultant at Southampton General Hospital where she is runs a tertiary referral service for constipation and incontinence. She is also the regional lead for anal cancer.

	Athur Harikrishnan ACPGBI President Athur (Hari) Harikrishnan is a Consultant Laparoscopic Colorectal Surgeon and trained in South Wales and East Anglia and is based in Sheffield. His interests include cancer, IBD and proctology. He is actively involved in teaching, training and simulation, TPD and runs several courses in Sheffield.

	James Hill ACPGBI Past-President James Hill was a Clinical Professor of colorectal surgery at Manchester Royal Infirmary, retiring from clinical practice in 2022. He has been involved with ACPGBI since its inception and is a past President of the Association

	Jan Sanders ACPGBI Legal Trustee Jan Sanders was a partner at international law firm Ashurst LLP for 24 years working in M&A and projects including in healthcare, education waste and energy and was responsible for departmental HR. She sits as a Magistrate on the adult and youth benches and is a Trustee of Common Purpose Charitable Trust, a global leadership organisation working to develop leaders who can cross boundaries. Currently Jan chairs their audit and risk committee.

	Baljit Singh ACPGBI Trustee Baljit Singh is a Consultant Colorectal Surgeon and Honorary Associate Professor at University Hospitals Leicester, UK

	Laura Hancock ACPGBI Honorary Secretary Laura Hancock is a consultant general and colorectal surgeon at Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust (Wythenshawe). Laura graduated from Imperial College School of Medicine, London and surgical training was undertaken in London, Oxford and the Northwest. This was followed by a National ALSGBI/RCS Eng Laparoscopic Colorectal Fellowship in Leeds in 2015.

	James Wheeler James Wheeler is a past ACPGBI Honorary Secretary. He was appointed to his current post as Consultant Colorectal and General Surgeon at Addenbrookes Hospital, Cambridge in 2013. He is Chair of Surgery Board and Divisional Director for Digestive Diseases (Surgery and Gastroenterology), T&O, Anaesthesia, Critical Care and Theatres at Addenbrookes Hospital. He had previously worked as a Consultant Colorectal and General Surgeon at Cheltenham General Hospital having been appointed in 2003.

	Howard Young ACPGBI Trustee Professor Howard Young Trained as a surgeon in colorectal surgery. Retired from consultant surgeon post in September 2009. Was also Vice Dean, School of Postgraduate Medical and Dental Education from 1992 until retirement - responsible for hospital medical practice section