The Health Foundation appoints three new governors, bringing expertise in diversity and inclusion, health inequalities, and investments

Ravi Gurumurthy and Professor Dawn Edge will add to the Foundation’s existing expertise in health equity, diversity and inclusion, and innovation. Katie Blacklock will oversee the investment of the Foundation’s endowment fund as a member of the Investment Committee and will also serve as a member of the Audit Committee. 

Ravi Gurumurthy has been Chief Executive of the charity Nesta since 2019 where he developed a new strategy to fulfill the organisation’s aim of improving people’s lives through mission-led innovation. Prior to joining Nesta, he founded and led the Airbel Innovation Lab at the International Rescue Committee and held several roles in the UK government, including Director of Strategy at the Department of Energy and Climate Change and Strategic Advisor to the Foreign Secretary. 

Dawn Edge is Professor of Mental Health and Inclusivity at the University of Manchester and the university’s Academic Lead for Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI). She has a clinical background as a chartered physiotherapist and research training in medical sociology in which she is an established leader in the field of inter-disciplinary research. She is also a former non-executive director of NHS Mental Health Trusts and trustee of several voluntary sector groups.

Katie Blacklock is a non-executive director of Edmond de Rothschild, a European financial services institution that specialises in private banking and asset management, and sits on the advisory committee of M&G Plc’s £130bn With Profits Fund. She has previously worked in financial services, initially as a portfolio manager specialising in Latin American equities and then as a partner at Nevsky Capital, a $7bn UK-based hedge fund. She also advises on a specialist climate strategy at Sarasin & Partners and has previously been a trustee of Power to Change and Wellbeing of Women.

Commenting on the new appointments, Dr Jennifer Dixon, Chief Executive of the Health Foundation, said: 

'We warmly welcome our three new governors whose knowledge and expertise in their respective fields will be invaluable in advancing the mission of the Foundation to improve health and health care for millions of people across the UK. 

'The appointments come at a time when the Health Foundation’s mission has never been more vital. In the wake of the pandemic the country faces several major health challenges including the recovery of the NHS, an ongoing crisis within social care, and widening health inequalities which existed prior to the pandemic but are likely to have been exacerbated by COVID-19 and measures to contain it.'

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