PPEF Trustees

Karen has been the Physio First (PF) nominated trustee of PPEF since taking on the role of PF Chair in 2019. Having now stepped down as PF Chair, Karen is spearheading a new role to expand involvement of students in PF, both by increasing clinical placements in private practice and by expanding the educational offering of Skills Exchanges, bringing together PF members and students in a supportive educational environment. She has been awarded Honorary Life Membership of Physio First and is honoured to have been appointed President from 2024. Previously serving on CSP Council, Karen chaired the CSP Educational Awards Panel and acted as a clinical educator for local universities championing student placement provision. Having run her own private multidisciplinary practice for over 25 years, Karen completed her MSc in Musculoskeletal Physiotherapy with an RCT conducted within the practice. Karen remains passionate about physiotherapy education and is keen to publicise the unique opportunities offered by the PPEF to all segments of the physiotherapy profession.

Ann has spent most of her physiotherapy career in the higher education sector and, until recently was directly involved in teaching, research and leadership within a team of physiotherapists. Throughout her career, Ann has been actively involved with the CSP where she has held a variety of roles that can be directly related the experience required to understand the role of a trustee. At the time of her application, Ann was Head of Life Sciences at Coventry University, however with retirement from this post, she feels that this is the perfect time to channel her energy and skills, particularly with regard to her research on the role of social media in professional networking, into supporting the work of the PPEF and helping to publicise the excellent opportunities and research activities it has to offer to a wider audience.

Sudhir Daya (he/him) is a South African-trained chartered physiotherapist who began his UK journey after working at SSISA. He gained experience across diverse healthcare settings before founding Integrated Health in Central London. Now focused on learning, development, and consultancy, Sudhir is a Senior Lecturer in Leadership Development at the University of Hertfordshire. He also runs his own consultancy, The Life Architect, providing executive coaching, training, facilitation, psychometrics, and neurofeedback services. Passionate about equity, diversity, and inclusion, he currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy (CSP) EDIB committee.

Katie is a chartered physiotherapist with over 30 years of musculoskeletal experience within the NHS and latterly in her own private practice in West Sussex. Based in London, trained at Kings College then spent 2 years at Guys Hospital after which Katie specialised at St. Georges Hospital Tooting for 9 years working alongside Orthopaedic Consultants, running a team of physiotherapist in the busy hospital clinic setting. Katie has been in private practice since 2002, is passionate about quality and ensuring people receiving accurate information about their specific conditions to determine the best course of management for optimal recovery. She is the current Physio First Chair

With 20 years of post-graduate experience as a Chartered Physiotherapist, I have developed a diverse skill set encompassing clinical practice, education, leadership and research. My portfolio career has allowed me to refine advanced clinical skills whilst developing educational expertise. Committed to research and continuous personal development, I earned a Master of Science in Multicultural Issues in Health in 2007. I possess extensive experience in physiotherapy education at both pre- and post-registration levels across various Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), including international contexts. This background has provided me with an in-depth understanding of the external and institutional factors influencing the education and workforce landscape in healthcare. Currently, as the Assistant Director of Workforce and Education, I hold strategic leadership over the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy's (CSP) quality assurance and enhancement activities across the UK. In this role, I work closely with providers of pre- and post-registration physiotherapy education, ensuring the highest standards are met and maintained.

Born and raised in Newcastle, Andrew founded Connect in 1989 with the aim of providing the highest level of care to people with musculoskeletal problems. He qualified as a physiotherapist from Northumbria University in 1985 and worked at Edinburgh’s main teaching hospital, The Royal Infirmary, for three years. He then returned to Newcastle to take up a post in Sports Medicine. Andrew combines his clinical expertise and commercial experience to develop innovative new ways to meet patient needs and commissioners’ budgets. Andrew is no stranger to innovation, being founding director of one of first social prescribing social enterprises, he formed the MSK Providers Network and has been key in building partnerships with universities to develop evidence base. A passionate believer in the value of effective clinical practice, he is a driving force for innovation and change, both within Connect and externally through routes such as MSKR, demonstrating perseverance and leadership in a challenging market. In 2016, Andrew became a Visiting Professor of Leeds Beckett University and was awarded a Fellowship of the CSP for innovation in MSK practice in 2022.

Sandy represents Physio First on the Board of Trustees. She is a private practitioner with many years experience and a past Chairman of Physio First.

Having been one of the first elected trustees in the early years of the PPEF, Sue is returning to the board with a wealth of experience, not only of her 40 years as a clinician, but also as past Chair of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy Charitable Trust. Sue was one of the first physiotherapists in the UK to carry out clinically based randomised controlled trials, as well as several small research projects, and she worked on, and piloted in her clinic, the first therapeutic clinic-specific software. Sue’s passion and enthusiasm for the future of the PPEF, her financial understanding of grant awards, her knowledge of the legal requirements of the Charity Commission, and her prior involvement in various charity projects mean that she will be an invaluable asset to the PPEF our board of trustees.