Shelford Group team
David Furness
Managing Director
David is Managing Director of the Shelford Group, responsible for development and delivery of strategy, senior stakeholder engagement, and representing the group to the NHS and wider health and care system partners.
Previously David was Director of Policy and Delivery at the Independent Healthcare Providers Network (IHPN), the award-winning membership body for independent providers, where he led the IHPN’s policy development and influencing work, especially around the role of independent providers in delivering NHS care. He has extensive experience across membership bodies and in national health policy roles, having worked as a Senior Policy Adviser at Monitor and then NHS Improvement, covering areas including patient choice, provider competition and collaboration, temporary staffing, and provider productivity. David has experience in both domestic and international health policy with previous roles at the University of Notre Dame School of Medicine in Sydney, Australia and the Social Market Foundation think tank in London.
Eleanor Carter
Deputy Managing Director | Safer Nursing Care Tool (SNCT) Programme Director | Shelford Surgical Training in Advanced Robotic Technology (START) Programme Director
Ellie joined the Shelford Group in 2018 from Imperial College Healthcare NHS Foundation, where she worked as an Improvement Lead in the Medical Director’s Office. She joined the Group as its first Health Policy and Improvement Fellow, a role established by the Shelford Group Chief Executives to develop and nurture talented emerging NHS leaders within Shelford Group member trusts.
Ellie is now Deputy Managing Director, responsible for overseeing programmes of work across a portfolio of executive groups, delivering priority projects, and supporting the Group’s vision to use its experience, expertise and capability to strengthen the NHS, improve health and care, and contribute to economic growth.
In addition to her Deputy Managing Director role, Ellie is Programme Director for the Shelford Surgical Training in Advanced Robotic Technology (START) programme, launched in 2025, and was appointed Safer Nursing Care Tool (SNCT) Programme Director in April 2026. In both roles, she is responsible for the successful delivery of these national programmes.
Ellie previously worked as Assistant Executive Director to the Minister of Public Health in Qatar.
Natalie Hudson
Head of Communications
Natalie joined The Shelford Group in January 2022 from Imperial College Health Partners, where she was Associate Director of Communications and Engagement, managing a highly successful team to deliver all communications and engagement on behalf of the organisation.
She has worked in healthcare communications for nearly 15 years and has held a range of senior communications roles at organisations including the General Medical Council, the Department of Health and the NHS Clinical Leaders Network. She is a trained journalist by background.
Emily Hughes
Policy Fellow
Emily joined the Shelford Group in July 2022 from the NHS Transformation Unit, where she was a Transformation Consultant providing project management, consultancy support and strategic insight to NHS organisations across England. Within this role, Emily led work in a variety of settings, including mental health, public health, acute care, and across wider systems.
Through the fellowship Emily is responsible for delivering projects to support the Group’s aims, as well as taking an active role in the work of the Group to provide a constructive contribution to the development of national policy in health and life sciences.
Alix Fromageau
PA to Managing Director and Shelford Group
Alix joined the Shelford group in October 2022 as PA to the Managing Director and Shelford Group Secretariat.
She was previously working for a local authority tri-borough service, leading the marketing and communications function for the fostering recruitment team. This role followed a position as an Executive Assistant to the CEO at a digital marketing agency listed on the Euronext, managing the leadership team’s global travel, full back office and strategic meetings.
Alix’s role is to support the Managing Director and Shelford Group fellows in their day-to-day activities, ensuring the smooth running of the office and key meetings.
Kerry Woodcock
MHOST Fellow
Kerry joined the Shelford Group in 2025 as MHOST Fellow, a role established to support the review and refresh of the MHOST workforce planning tool. She is a registered nurse (learning disabilities) and has worked in the NHS for 20 years, predominantly in mental health inpatient and urgent care services (for both adults and children) before taking on the role of Head of Nursing in 2018 at Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Foundation Trust. In the role as Head of Nursing, she is responsible for safer staffing, clinical career development and education. Kerry has been a CNO safer staffing fellow since 2019.