GOsC announces Council appointments and re-appointments

Appointment and reappointment of members of the General Osteopathic Council

The General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) has announced the appointment of two new lay members to the Council. Professor Colin Coulson-Thomas and Mark Eames have been appointed for a four-year term from 1 April 2013. Professor Coulson-Thomas and Mr Eames will replace outgoing members Professor Ian Hughes and John Chuter who have both served on Council since April 2003.

Professor Coulson-Thomas has held numerous Board level appointments within the business, education, healthcare and regulation sectors. Currently he is Professor in Human Resources and Organisational Behaviour at the University of Greenwich, a non-executive Director of NHS Cambridgeshire and NHS Peterborough, as well as serving as Chairman of the Group Risk Committee of United Learning – the largest operator of independent schools and academies in the UK.

Mark Eames is currently a non-executive at the Financial Reporting Council, the UK’s independent regulator for corporate governance and financial reporting and also works as an independent consultant advising on governance, business performance and assurance. Originally trained as an engineer, he held senior leadership roles with BP in the UK and Africa in both its operating businesses and global functions.

Council members play a key role in setting strategy and policy to ensure the GOsC fulfils its statutory duties to regulate standards of osteopathic care in the UK.

Alison White, GOsC Chair, said:

“These new appointments bring invaluable experience to the GOsC. I feel sure our new members will make an excellent contribution to Council’s work in the future and I very much look forward to working with them. I would also like to pay tribute to the hard work and commitment of outgoing members Ian Hughes and John Chuter who have served the Council with great distinction in its development as an effective regulator."

In addition to the new appointments, lay members Kim Lavely, Julie Stone and Jenny White and registrant members Jonathan Hearsey and Kenneth McLean have been reappointed to serve a further term on the Council. Mr Hearsey, Ms Lavely, Mr McLean and Ms Stone will serve for four years and Ms Jenny White for three years.

Appointments to Council are made by the Privy Council on merit through an open process conducted by the GOsC in line with standards set by the Professional Standards Authority for Health and Social Care.

All members receive a remuneration of £6,630 per year.

ENDS

For further information contact:
The GOsC Press Office
Tel: 020 7357 6655 x245
Email: pressoffice@osteopathy.org.uk 

Notes to Editors

For information about the GOsC's Council please see: www.osteopathy.org.uk/about-us/the-organisation/council/ 

The General Osteopathic Council (GOsC) has a statutory duty to regulate the practice of osteopathy in the UK. Osteopaths must be registered with the GOsC in order to practise in the UK. We work with the public and the profession to promote patient safety by:

• registering qualified professionals
• setting, maintaining and developing standards of osteopathic practice and conduct
• assuring the quality of osteopathic education
• ensuring continuing professional development
• helping patients with concerns or complaints about an osteopath.

The statutory register of osteopaths provides a geographical index of all practising osteopaths, and is available to the general public and to healthcare providers online at: www.osteopathy.org.uk/register-search