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Amanda Pritchard has officially taken up the role of chief executive at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, with a formal handover from outgoing Chief Executive Professor Ian Abbs set for Friday 5 September.
Pritchard returns to the trust after serving as chief executive of NHS England from August 2021 until March 2025. She resigned from that role in February following meetings with Health Secretary Wes Streeting and criticism from several House of Commons committees. Her departure came just weeks before the Prime Minister announced the abolition of NHS England, with its functions being absorbed into the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) as part of sweeping reforms aimed at cutting bureaucracy and costs.
Pritchard’s move back to Guy’s and St Thomas’ has been welcomed by trust leaders, including chairman Charles Alexander CBE.
“I am delighted that Amanda will be coming back to Guy’s and St Thomas’ as Chief Executive, and we look forward to benefiting from her considerable leadership experience, including at a national level. The Board and colleagues across the trust will want to join me in extending her a very warm welcome as Amanda reconnects with former colleagues and gets to know the many new colleagues who have joined the trust in recent years, including at Royal Brompton and Harefield hospitals.”
Charles Alexander CBE, Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust Chairman.
Alexander also paid tribute to Professor Ian Abbs, who is stepping down after nearly five decades at the trust. “Ian is highly regarded as one of the leading chief executives in the NHS, and within the trust is hugely respected for his compassionate and inclusive leadership, including steering the Trust through the many challenges faced by both our patients and staff during the pandemic.”
Pritchard said she was energised by the chance to return to frontline leadership. “I am very much looking forward to taking up my role as Chief Executive, returning to the frontline of the NHS. I’ll be doing so in an organisation that delivers comprehensive services both in the community and from five of the UK’s leading hospitals, serving patients locally in south east London, but also from across the country through its many specialist services.
“Much has changed since I left the trust in 2019, and I am excited to get to know the new organisation. I am hugely energised by the opportunity to build on Ian’s legacy as I work with colleagues both within the trust and in the wider healthcare system to meet the challenges currently facing the NHS and capitalise on the unique opportunities we have to transform the way we deliver care for our patients.”
Pritchard’s appointment comes at a moment of significant upheaval for the NHS nationally. While NHS England’s abolition marks the end of an era in health service administration, her return to Guy’s and St Thomas’ signals continuity and stability for one of the country’s most prominent trusts.
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