Team Biographies
Get to know the heart and soul of NATH
James Baillon
Data Analytics Manager
James is responsible for providing the Training Hub with data capture, analysis and reporting, whilst supporting project work streams, focussing on Primary and Social Care initiatives. He believes the role of data analytics and an evidence-based approach is integral to making effective decisions. He hopes to draw on his expertise in quantitative and qualitative research methods and analysis to support NATH with the delivery of excellent healthcare by educating, informing and enhancing the primary and community care workforce.
James holds an MSc in Psychology and an MSc in Health Psychology, and is a graduate member of the British Psychological Society.
Gemma Bird
Lead Practice Nurse for Nottingham and Nottinghamshire
Gemma's role within NATH is to support newly qualified Nurses and Nurses new to practice, develop within their role and access local and national funding available to them. Gemma leads our General Practice Nurse Mid-career Fellowship offer and supports our CPD team to organise various training events throughout the year.
Gemma is still a Practice Nurse herself and has the role of PCN Nurse Lead for Mid Notts and Bassetlaw. Gemma is passionate about being a representative of the Practice Nurse workforce and ensuring their voices are heard within the system. Gemma’s work enables her to work collaboratively with all areas of health and social care system within the locality to improve services and patient outcomes. Gemma has a BSc in Adult Nursing PG Cert within long-term condition management. Gemma has also completed her Professional Nurse Advocate training.
Laura Bryden
Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Lead
Laura is one of our Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Leads.. She qualified as a Physiotherapist in 2005. Initially working as a rotational Physiotherapist in a large NHS hospital and later moving to specialise in musculoskeletal health as a Physiotherapist employed by the military. In 2015, she took some time out to study for an MSc and on completion she took a job as a trainee Extended Scope Practitioner. After five years of working in a musculoskeletal interim triage service, she wanted a change and so moved to work as First Contact Practitioner (FCP) in primary care, employed by PICS. A job she has learnt to really enjoy. When she is not at work, she tries to stay fit and calm with running and yoga.
Rachel Burrows
General Practice Nurse (GPN) Educator
Rachel’s role involves the provision of support, supervision and guidance for Trainee Nursing Associates, qualified Nursing Associates and General Practice Nurses who are new to their roles within general practice. This is with the aim of promoting a positive learning experience for these groups and improving workforce resilience and retention.
Rachel has a BSc in Adult Nursing and works as a Lead Practice Nurse at Orchard Surgery. Rachel also works as a General Practice Nurse Assessor for De Montfort University and is passionate about increasing the profile of general practice nursing as a career choice for newly qualified Nurses.
Sarah Chalmers-Page
Evidence & Evaluation Associate
Sarah is an experienced NHS Manager who has worked as a Freelance Consultant in Healthcare evaluation, evidence, improvement and strategy since 2014. Experienced in primary, community and hospital care, and having worked for the likes of National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for 4 years, Sarah brings a wealth of experience to the team.
As an associate of NATH, Sarah has conducted an evaluation of a range of new roles and support programmes, including GP Fellowships, the new GP Assistant role, and supervision of multi-professional teams. She has also worked on service evaluation across health and social care.
Dr. Paul Davis
GP Associate
Paul’s time is split between working as a GP Fellow at the Training Hub, operating as a GP at the Orchard Surgery in Kegworth and completing a Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education at the University of Nottingham.
His work at the Training Hub is predominantly focused on mental health, looking at the role of prescribing practice nurses and the scope for extended involvement in Mental Health reviews within primary care.
Desi Gillespie
Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Lead
Desi is one of our Allied Health Professionals (AHP) Leads. In her Primary Care role, Desi currently works as a First Contact Physiotherapist (FCP) and holds the Advanced Clinical Practitioner digital badge. Within her Occupational Therapist (OT) clinical lead role, she supports all OTs, physical and mental, through the NHS England FCP Roadmap. She leads the recruitment, line-management and clinical development of FCP Mental Health OTs in Primary Care including starting Band 6 Developmental posts.
Alongside this she works at the University of Nottingham Sports Injury Clinic in a Sports Medicine role, supporting students and clinicians in their learning journey. She has a BSc(Hons), MSc Sports and Exercise Medicine, MSK Peripheral Joint Injector, has completed the FCP Roadmap, and is a Roadmap Supervisor. She has experience working in elite sport including England Netball and GB Paralympic Shooting, alongside working in Primary Care.
Penny Guard
Learning and Development Manager
Penny is the Training Hub lead for Primary Care Apprenticeships and the development of Primary Care Student Placements, supporting Primary Care Networks and Primary Care organisations to create robust workforce plans based on current and future population health needs.
Before working at NATH, Penny spent over 20 years in the learning and development sector specialising in managing, designing, quality assurance and delivery of apprenticeships and short courses, qualified as an assessor, tutor and IQA, involved in the development of the new apprenticeship standards that included Health Care, Aviation, Hospitality, Customer Service, Logistics, Finance, Early Years and Retail.
Dr. Minali Gupta
GP Associate
Minali is a Portfolio GP and trainer based in Nottingham City. She works for the training hub as part of the Primary Care Training Team. She has special interests in medical education and health inequalities. Her background includes completion of the Post-CCT Trailblazer GP Fellowship and working as the Fellowship Scheme Lead with the Phoenix Programme, which focuses on healthcare in areas of deprivation. She is also a GP Appraiser for NHS England.
Her qualifications included BMedSci, BMBS, DFSRH, MRCGP and a Postgraduate Certificate in Clinical Education.
Denise Harnett
Operations & Events Administrator
Denise provides business, project, meeting and event administrative support to the NATH team. This involves approving event requests and supporting them from start to finish, including publishing details on our Eventbrite site and NATH events webpages. She also co-manages the central alliance inbox alongside Sharon Hovey.
Having spent 10 years providing training to the legal community in Birmingham, she felt that it was time for a change and move into providing training for those who work in Primary Care. You can find out more about her background via Denise’s LinkedIn profile. Denise is passionate about providing quality training to support those working within Primary Care.
Sharon Hovey
Administration Assistant
Sharon joined the NATH team in April 2021 and will be providing support to the whole team with all areas of administration. Sharon has experience of working in a variety of roles across the public sector including both the NHS and Prison Service. She has worked as a teaching assistant at Rampton and staff learning and development co-ordinator for the Prison Service ensuring all staff were fully trained in their various roles. She also volunteers at Newark's Covid-19 vaccination centre.
Sharon loves helping people, trying to make a difference and strives to help people further their careers.
Kate Knowles
Integrated Care System Advanced Practice Lead
Kate has joined NATH in a year’s part-time secondment from Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust (NUH). She is responsible for leading on the implementation of the Nottinghamshire Integrated Care System (ICS) Advanced Practitioner (AP) Agenda and will support the ICS AP Steering Group in developing and implementing a multi-professional ICS advanced practice strategy.
Having completed the MSc in Advanced Clinical Practice at the University of Nottingham (UoN) Kate also works part-time as an AP within Acute Medicine, Medicine Divisional Lead AP at NUH and Assistant Honorary Professor UoN. Previous accomplishments include Winston Churchill Memorial Trust Fellow (2017).
Dr. John Lu
GP Associate
John is a GP Associate with NATH working on developing mental health education modules to help up-skill the knowledge of our ARRS staffs as well as GP practices staff in mental health.
He is also the Educational Lead for Nottinghamshire Trailblazer Fellows and Mid-Career PCN Fellow for Bulwell and Top Valley PCN. His qualifications include: MBChB, AFRCS Ed, FRCS CTh Ed, MD, MRCGP.
Dr Errum Mumtaz
Educator Lead
Errum qualified as a GP from Nottingham VTS in 2019. She is a practicing GP in Ilkeston and the Educator Lead at NATH, co-managing several NATH works streams including Quality Assurance Framework for learning environments, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI), and Differential Attainment. She also manages and supports GPN Leadership and their workstreams. She is enthusiastic about supporting primary care colleagues to have fulfilling and sustainable careers.
Outside of work, Errum enjoys travelling, socialising with friends and spending quality family time with her twin girls.
Darcie Parry
Care Coordinator Lead
Darcie focuses on spreading awareness of the Care Coordinator role. She aims to promote the benefits/outcomes available if the role is utilised correctly, training/development opportunities and the career pathways for Care Coordinators.
She aims to develop a Peer Support Network so that Care Coordinators can have a platform to talk about their roles and the opportunities they can access or promote in their PCNs.
Sarah Partridge
Pharmacy Project Associate
Sarah initially joined NATH to lead a pharmacy clinical supervision project. This role has evolved, and she is now working with the Multi-Professional Support Unit (MPSU). Sarah is a GP Practice Pharmacist based in Nottingham City. Having worked in primary care for almost 7 years she has experience of working in hospitals, community and university. Sarah has an interest in education and development of the primary care workforce and brings a wealth of experience to the team.
Sarah has a Master of Pharmacy, as well as a Diploma in Clinical Pharmacy Practice and Postgraduate Certificate in Prescribing Studies.
Pranjali Shewale
Communications and Engagement Assistant
Pranjali oversees and delivers key advertising and marketing initiatives, with a focus on stakeholder engagement, campaign strategy, and brand alignment. She works closely with internal teams and external partners to ensure all communications support strategic objectives. She holds an M.Sc. in Advertising and Marketing, providing a strong foundation in consumer behaviour, brand management, and strategic communications.
Pranjali has also earned a Level 4 Qualification from the Chartered Institute of Marketing. Driven by a belief in the power of storytelling and strategic communication, she is passionate about connecting people, influencing behaviour, and creating meaningful, lasting impact across audiences and organisations.
Michele Tuttle
Learning and Development Project Officer
Michele is our go-to person for advice on all things funding and apprenticeships. She will support you to find the right apprenticeship and training provider and guide you through the funding process. She also leads our hybrid placement project for student nurses. This project gives students an opportunity to undertake a wide range of experiences in primary care whilst on placement. You’ll find Michele at a lot of our events speaking to primary care staff about the services available from NATH. She is also here to support you with all your training needs.
Michele has had a variety of roles within the NHS including EMAS, CItyCare, the ICS, CCGs and Public Health England.
Paul Wade
Primary Care Advanced Practice Lead
Paul currently works as an Advanced Clinical Practitioner at Castle Healthcare Practice in West Bridgford. Prior to this, he was employed as a Paramedic with East Midlands Ambulance Service after moving up from Gloucestershire where he worked as Lead Paramedic for South Western Ambulance Service.
As a Paramedic by background with a keen interest in sport and exercise, his key areas of interest in Primary Care are acute illness, musculoskeletal presentations and joint injections. Paul is excited to be joining NATH, engaging with ACPs from various backgrounds all over the county, and continuing to help develop the community of Advanced Practice.
Dr. James Waldron
GP Associate
As a practising GP here in Nottingham, James also represents the ICS and Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) First 5 Group and works as a GP tutor in the Phoenix Programme. Over the last few years James has organised and chaired a number of conferences in the healthcare space, as well as educational evenings and engagement events both in person and online. He also works as an Associate with NATH, running and developing educational programmes, as well as a variety of other events.
James holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Medical Education and is currently undertaking NHS England – Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) programme.
Louise Woodward
Operations & Communications Manager
Louise leads and supports the Operations Team across finance, communications, creative projects, events, and business administration. She focuses on improving processes, managing branding and digital accessibility, and creating engaging content for web and digital platforms. Louise also supports app development and data dashboards, chairs key meetings, is Secretary to the NATH Board and contributes to strategic planning. She is passionate about making systems work smarter and enjoys blending creativity with practical solutions to keep everything running smoothly.
In 2025, she completed her Digital Marketer Degree Apprenticeship at Nottingham Trent University and has been implementing her enhanced marketing and communications knowledge into her work. She values being driven, creative, supportive, and belonging to an inclusive community, sparking her motivation in this role.
