Professor Joe Rafferty has been appointed as the new Chair of The Christie NHS Foundation Trust. Joe succeeds Edward Astle who announced in January he was stepping down for personal family reasons. He will take up his role on 1 May 2025.
He brings over 20 years of board-level experience in NHS organisations to The Christie and is passionate about fostering a culture of innovation and using data to drive planning and decision making.
Joe has spent his career working in healthcare and the NHS and was the Chief Executive of Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust until his retirement in October 2024. He transformed the organisation into one of the largest and most successful mental and community health trusts in the country during his 12 years in charge.
During his tenure he also took on the role as the Out of Hospital Lead CEO for the Cheshire and Merseyside regional incident control centre set up as a response to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic and co-founded the Zero Suicide Alliance UK.
He also led the NIHR Mental Health Mission for the NHS that helped establish a national centre for mental health research at Liverpool University, where he is also an honorary professor.
His career spans a range of areas including performance, commissioning and strategy in provider trusts, strategic health authorities and central government having worked among others for NHS Central Lancashire, the NHS Commissioning Board Authority and NHS North West.
Joe was born and brought up in Northern Ireland, attending Queen’s University Belfast where he studied for a PhD in Molecular Genetics. He began his career as a researcher, working at Cambridge University research laboratory and at the former Paterson Institute in the late 1980s before making the move into NHS management.
He has also extensively published in national and international healthcare journals, contributing to discussions on population health, system transformation and leadership innovation.
Joe said: “I am thrilled to be appointed Chair of The Christie, returning to where I first began my career. I am looking forward to contributing to and growing The Christie’s already significant success.
“I aim to bring a collaborative and inclusive leadership approach to ensure the Board and Council of Governors achieve the right mix of ambitious outlook, strategy and capability to remain future focused and accountable to patients, staff and wider stakeholders.”
Roger Spencer, Chief Executive, said: “I am looking forward to Joe becoming part of The Christie and working alongside him.
“Along with his vast experience and detailed knowledge of the NHS, I know he shares our values of making a real difference to people and putting our patients at the heart of everything we do.”
