Our Patron

 

Julia Cumberlege is best known to midwives and those concerned with the maternity services as the leader of the task force which carried out a national review of these services 15 years ago and consequently made the innovative recommendations published in the 1993 report Changing Childbirth. As a Minister of Health at the time, she assembled a pioneering group of professionals and lay people who explored the issues in depth from the point of view of women and their families, as well as midwives and doctors. The 10 ‘key indicators of success’ identified by the Cumberlege Expert Group had a major impact on the work and status of midwives, and most remain highly relevant today.  Since the publication of Changing Childbirth, Baroness Cumberlege has maintained a strong interest in policy and practice related to the maternity services. Among the numerous roles in which she plays an active part are being Patron both of the National Childbirth Trust and the Birth Centre Network UK; Vice President of both the Royal College of Midwives and of Nursing; a Senior Associate of the King’s Fund; an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians; and a Trustee of Cancer Research UK. On accepting the invitation to become patron of the IMT, Baroness Cumberlege said, "I look forward to working with the Iolanthe in its aims to identify and support excellence in midwifery care and to speak with an independent voice for midwives".

Julia Cumberlege

 

The Trust currently has 10 Trustees, pictured below. To find out more about each Trustee simply hold the cursor over the picture.

 

 

 

 

 

Jean works for the Royal College of Midwives, having worked as a research midwife looking at inequality. She is committed to midwifery, its research, the doing but as importantly the dissemination of its evidence.

Jean Davies

With a little more time on her hands (having recently completed her PhD) Helen took over as vice-chair of the Trust in November 2008. Helen is a programme leader in the Nursing, Midwifery and Allied Health Professions Research Unit, Scotland. She was awarded the 2001 Ann Stewart Award for her research work.

Helen Cheyne

Vice-chair

 

Billie Hunter is the Trust’s Chair. She is Professor of Midwifery at the Centre for Midwifery and Gender Studies, University of Wales Swansea. She became interested in the work of the Trust after being awarded a Research Fellowship in 1999 to explore Emotion Work in Midwifery. She is committed to encouraging other midwives to reach their potential though education and research. Billie currently holds a Leading Practice Through Research Award from the Health Foundation.

Billie Hunter

Chair

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elizabeth's experience is in publishing and journalism. She was previously editor of the journal ‘Midwives’ for the Royal College of Midwives and now edits ‘International Midwifery’ for the International Confederation of Midwives. She also writes a regular column for the ‘MIDIRS Midwifery Digest’ and for ‘Midwifery’. Elizabeth would like to see the Iolanthe Midwifery Trust's work more widely known through award winners being encouraged to publish their research and accounts of their overseas travels.

Elizabeth Duff

Executive Director

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

With over 30 years experience as a GP in an inner city practice in south London, Luke has a special interest in the role of the GP in maternity care and in furthering the integration of the hospital and community based services. He was the founder of the multi-disciplinary RSM Forum on Maternity and the New-born and a founder member of the Association of Community Based Maternity Care. He was an advisor to the Parliamentary Select Committee on Health under of the chairmanship of Nicholas Winterton.

Luke Zander

 

Ruth is a Reader in Midwifery at University of Huddersfield. She has a strong clinical practice background & works part-time at Bradford Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Ruth’s research focuses on organisational culture, specifically midwife-led units, birth centres & obstetric culture. She is committed to working with clinical midwives in order to help them increase their understanding of, and/or change, their work situation. She holds a Health Foundation Award, Leading Practice through Research.

Ruth Deery

 

Iolanthe

Trustees

 

 

James is the Founder Trustee amongst our current Trustees. He brings extensive legal experience and expertise to our deliberations. On behalf of the Trust he has also tapped the counsel of some of his legal colleagues in order to keep us within the legal limits of our charitable status and our range of activities. This has included the appointment of our Administrator and modifying the name of the Trust. He is a wise and valued counsellor.

James Watt
 

Richard is a Director of Adam & Company. As the Trustee with financial expertise and experience he provides the Trust with a level of advice and support on financial issues which few Trusts this size will have. In addition, the Trust benefits from the use of the accommodation at the Bank for its meetings.

Richard Donaldson

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sue is Strategy Manager for Children & Maternity at the Healthcare Commission bringing extensive experience in user involvement, NHS management, governance & policy. An engineer, Sue left the oil industry for maternity leave, joining the NHS in 1993 in a Non-Executive Board role whilst involved in voluntary & statutory organisations related to maternity, education & environmental issues. A Trust Board chair for six years, Sue is passionate about good governance & raising the profile of maternity services.

Sue Eardley

 

 

 

 

Celina comes from a strong practice base. She is an experienced Head of Midwifery and Divisional Lead Nurse for Women & Children’s Services at the Buckinghamshire Hospitals NHS Trust. She is based at Stoke Mandeville Hospital. Celina has extensive knowledge of the needs and professional concerns of practising midwives and nurses.

Celina Eves

 

Vanora keeps the Trust at the forefront of IT developments: she developed and maintains this web site. As a previous award winner, and vice-chair (2004 – 2008), Vanora is well versed in the Trust's activities. She has a strong research background, particularly in encouraging midwives' to use evidence in practice. She works part-time at Semmelweis University in Budapest and is an Honorary Senior Lecturer in the NMAHP Research Unit at the University of Stirling.

Vanora Hundley

 

  

 

 

 

 

 
 

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