Appointment of new Joint Chief Executive Officer at Great Western Hospitals, Royal United Hospitals Bath and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust

Great Western Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, the Royal United Hospitals Bath Foundation Trust and Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust have today announced the appointment of Cara Charles-Barks as their Joint Chief Executive Officer.

This appointment follows a decision by the Boards of each of the three Trusts earlier this year to establish a group model which will deliver better outcomes for the population we serve.

Cara, who will be in post from Friday 1 November, has worked in the Bath and north east Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire system for eight years, having been Chief Executive at Salisbury and the RUH.

She said: “I am delighted to have been appointed Joint Chief Executive Officer of the three Trusts in Bath, Swindon and Wiltshire at this pivotal moment in the NHS’ history. As three Trusts we now have the opportunity to learn together, to tackle inequalities in access to services, to work together to remove barriers to good health and provide improved health outcomes for all our communities.”

Chief Executive of Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire Integrated Care Board, Sue Harriman, said: “Cara’s appointment is excellent news for our three hardworking acute hospitals and our wider health and care system.

“True collaboration adds real value to patient care and all three hospital trusts have a unique role to play in strengthening the support that local people and communities count on at every stage of their lives. Under Cara’s expert leadership, our hospitals will be stronger together and I look forward to seeing the benefits of these new arrangements over the coming years.”

The group will be a collaboration between the three existing Trusts; each of which remain separate organisations and will maintain a dedicated Executive team and Board. This decision is not a merger of the Trusts.  

Elizabeth O’Mahony, NHS England Regional Director for the South West, said:

“Our hospitals in Bath, Swindon, and Salisbury have a long history of delivering high quality care to their communities, in some cases for centuries”.

“By collaborating more closely and sharing ideas and resources, this partnership will enable them to continue evolving and thriving for years to come.

“I’m pleased to welcome Cara to the joint CEO role, where her extensive skills and experience will be invaluable.”

Cara Charles-Barks biography

Cara qualified as a Registered Nurse in 1990 in Australia. She has 30 years’ experience in the public and private health care sector and has been named as one of the NHS's top 50 Chief Executives five times.

Cara has been the Chief Executive Officer of the RUH since September 2020. Before that, she was CEO at Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust, during which time she received an MBE as part of the Queen’s Birthday Honours for her leadership during the Novichok incident.

In June 2019, she was appointed Honorary Colonel of 243 Multi-role Medical Regiment, part of the Army Medical Services.