Committee

Jo Posnette

CHA Chair and conference lead 

Jo is a registered nurse and former Matron of Didcot Community Hospital. She specialised in community services and community hospitals as a management consultant and now works as a medico-legal expert witness in catastrophic injury claims.

Jo has supported the CHA for many years through conferences, membership and Special Interest Groups, and was appointed Chair of the CHA in 2026. As Conference Lead she led the delivery of the CHA National Conference 2026 in Swindon, bringing together delegates from across the UK for two days of inspiring sessions, workshops and networking that left delegates feeling motivated to return and apply new ideas in their own services.

Julia Fairhall

Innovation and Best Practice Awards Lead and committee member

Julia is the Community Divisional Director of Nursing at Sussex Community NHS Foundation Trust and works across both community services and community hospitals.

Julia has been a strong supporter of the CHA and has contributed to research, networking events and innovation initiatives linked to community hospitals.

Julia leads the annual CHA Innovation and Best Practice Awards programme, which she has developed and expanded to five distinct award categories. In 2025 she oversaw the 25th anniversary of the awards, celebrating a quarter century of recognising innovation and best practice across community hospitals. Julia also contributes to CHA Special Interest Group discussions, bringing a frontline clinical and leadership perspective to the work.

Sue Greenwood MBE

Committee member

Sue is a Modern Matron and Clinical Lead at Cornwall Partnerships NHS Foundation Trust.

Sue has long been an active supporter of the CHA and has contributed to forums, conferences and national discussions around community hospitals.

Sue has been instrumental in establishing CATU, Community Assessment and Treatment Units, in community hospitals for frail elderly patients.

Sue Greenwood is a Queen’s Nurse and has received an MBE for her services.

Ines de Abreu

Committee member

Ines is an Advanced Clinical Practitioner working in Intermediate Care, supporting people, most of them over the age of 65, through rehabilitation and clinical optimisation before returning home.

Many of the people supported by the service are recovering from falls, trauma, serious illness, sepsis or exacerbations of long-term conditions including respiratory and neurological illnesses, frailty and dementia.

Ines qualified as a nurse in 1993 and has worked across Mental Health and Neurosciences including brain injury, spinal cord injury, Parkinson’s disease, MND, MS and other life-limiting conditions.

Her experience also includes Emergency and Acute Medicine and HIV services for children, adults and older people across a range of healthcare systems internationally.

Ines has led and contributed to the development of services including Neuro-Rehabilitation Units, Dementia Day Units, Virtual Wards, Urgent Community Response teams and outreach services supporting people experiencing homelessness, neurological disorders and mental health needs.

She has a particular interest in frailty, delirium, dementia and community-based services that support independence, rehabilitation and recovery after illness or trauma.

Ines has also led quality improvement initiatives and research projects and is currently preparing research focused on the role of nutrition in people living with frailty following trauma, infection or other medical illness.

Nikki Woodland

Committee Member 

Nikki has extensive experience of working in community hospitals and is currently the Head of Clinical Quality for the Bedded and Inpatient Units for Sirona care & health across Bristol, North Somerset and South Gloucestershire.

She is passionate about the important role community hospitals play in delivering health and care services close to people’s homes and communities.

She is committed to helping community hospitals share learning, innovation and best practice across services and organisations.

Julie Sharma 

Committee member 

Having recently retired after almost 50 years working in health and care services, Julie says she was both delighted and humbled to be invited to join the Community Hospitals Association Committee.  Throughout her career, community services have been at the heart of the care she values most.

"The CHA has been an important source of reference and support to me since I first moved into community services over 40 years ago. Alongside its excellent research and evaluation of the benefits of strong, comprehensive community services, it brings together frontline practitioners whose experiences keep us grounded in the realities of day-to-day care and the innovative ways they respond to the changing needs of individuals and communities."

"I hope to continue contributing to the Association’s work and to help ensure that community services are recognised, valued and championed and that they remain central to future health and care planning."

Marc Jobson 

Committee member 

Marc began his public service career with a law degree and then joined the Police in 1996, where he spent 20 years specialising in response policing and custody. His frontline experience gave him insight into the everyday challenges people face and a lasting drive to support others.

In 2017, Marc took on the role of managing Budleigh Hospital’s health and wellbeing hub. In 2022, he led its transformation into the charity Seachange, which he now heads.

Marc says “through my work at Seachange, I have developed a deep understanding of the challenges facing local hospitals and voluntary services, and I am keen to contribute positively to the future sustainability and development of community hospitals in all their forms. I am committed to collaboration, innovation and ensuring that patients and local residents remain at the heart of decision-making.”

Clare Liggins  

Committee member 

Dr Alastair Noble MBE

CHA National Lead for Scotland

Dr Alastair Noble has had an extensive career combining clinical work as a GP within community hospitals alongside strategic healthcare leadership at national level.

He has supported community hospitals in Scotland for more than 40 years and continues to advocate for integrated community healthcare services.

David Farnsworth

CHA National Lead for Wales

David is a registered nurse with more than 35 years of NHS experience across mental health, emergency care and leadership roles supporting quality and safety improvement.

He currently works as Assistant Director of Community Services in Powys Teaching Health Board.

Jan Marriott

Associate Committee Member

Jan has been involved with the CHA for many years, serving as Director, Chair, Vice-Chair and committee member.

She is a registered nurse with extensive experience managing community hospitals and leading innovative healthcare services.

Dr Helen Tucker

Fellow of the Community Hospitals Association

Helen is a Fellow and former President of the Community Hospitals Association and is committed to raising the profile of community hospitals and promoting their contribution to community health and wellbeing.

She has worked across management, consultancy, development and research roles connected to community hospitals and has visited more than half of all community hospitals across the UK.

Helen is Co-convenor for the Special Interest Group on Community Hospitals within the Q Community and completed her PhD at the University of Warwick focusing on integrated care in community hospitals.

She is also a reviewer for academic journals and serves on the Editorial Advisory Board for the Journal of Integrated Care.

Helen presented at the 2021 IFIC Conference where she received the Overall Award for her paper exploring patient experience within integrated care.  

Publications and Presentations

Tom Brooks

CHA Wales Associate Member

Tom is the CHA Wales Associate Member and is a retired management consultant with experience working across NHS organisations in the UK and internationally.

His work has included healthcare projects in Norway and Hong Kong, alongside extensive involvement in rural healthcare advocacy across Wales.

Tom has served on a Community Health Council, acted as Committee Advisor to a Welsh Health Board and provided evidence to Parliamentary Select Committees.

He is also a committee member of the North Wales Healthcare Alliance and represents patients within the NHS Rural Health & Care Wales Steering Committee.

Eleanor Murphy

CHA Service Development Manager

Eleanor leads the operational development of the CHA and works alongside the directors, committee members and volunteers to drive the organisation forward. 

Eleanor brings a background in service development, project management and supported employment across public and voluntary sectors, with a particular commitment to organisations that exist to make a genuine difference. She is based in Somerset.

eleanor@communityhospitals.net