NHS foundation trusts are public benefit corporations and have a governance structure that must include members, a membership council (or council of governors) and a board of directors. Our membership comprises patients, staff and members of the public that live in the communities in which we provide services.
The membership council is made up of elected and appointed/nominated governors. Elected governors are either:
- Public governors, elected by members of the public constituency
- Patient governors, elected by members of the patient constituency
- Staff governors, elected by the staff body
Appointed/nominated governors represent stakeholder organisations, all of which are specified in the constitution. Our current named stakeholder organisations are:
- Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB)
- London Borough of Islington
- College of Optometrists
- University College London (UCL)
A guide to the statutory roles of governors can be found under 'related documents' on the right hand side of the page.
Elected governors
-
Robert Jones
Patient constituency
-
Emily Brothers
Patient governor
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Emmanuel Zuridis
South West London public constituency
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Ursula Smartt
Patient governor
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John Russell
North East London and Essex public constituency
-
Robert Goldstein
North West London public constituency
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Kimberley Jackson
South West London public constituency
-
Allan MacCarthy
South East London public constituency
-
Paul Murphy
North Central London public constituency
-
Yasir Khan
Staff governor
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Dinesh Solanki
-
Junia Rahman
-
Vijay Arora
North West London public constituency
-
Suryanarayana Naga Subramanian
South East London public constituency
-
Sean Cooke
Public governor
-
Amit Arora
Staff governor
-
Margaret Connor
Public Governor Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire
Nominated governors
-
Ian Humphreys
College of Optometrists
Membership council meetings
3 September 2026
26 November 2026
4 March 2027
Additional resources
Membership council report can be found within the board papers.
Register of interests
Name | Job Title | Interest Declared |
Paul Murphy | Public governor | Nil |
Vijay Arora | Public governor | Nil |
Robert Goldstein | Public governor | Nil |
Ursula Smartt | Patient | Under the supervision of Professor Carlos Pavesio and his research team since 2013; takes part in clinical trials |
Robert Jones | Patient | Trustee of Moorfields Eye Charity |
Suryanarayana (aka Naga) Subramanian | Public governor | Nil |
Amit Arora | Staff governor | Nil |
Sean Cooke | Public governor | Nil |
Ian Humphreys | Partnership | Chief Executive The College of Optometrists |
Junia Rahman | Staff governor | Nil |
John Russell | Public governor | Nil |
Allan MacCarthy | Public governor | Member of The Labour Party (don't hold any position in the organisation), Member of the Co-Operative Party (don't hold any position in the organisation), Honarary Alderman Royal Borough of Greenwich (honorific position not one of control and influence), Freeman City of London (honorific position not one of control and influence), Member Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust (Hold no position of any kind inlcuding any form of control or influence within or connected to this body in any way) |
Yasir Khan | Staff governor | Nil |
Dinesh Solanki | Public governor | Director Unical Ltd, Member Bentley Wood High School Trust |
Emily Brothers | Patient | Nil |
Emmanuel Zuridis | Public governor | Trustee of Hellenic Community Trust |
Kimberley Jackson | Public governor | Employee Eli Lilly & Company (Pharmaceutical Company) |
Margaret Connor | Public governor (Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire) |
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