Sir Julian Hartley joined NHS Providers as chief executive in February 2023, having been chief executive of Leeds Teaching Hospitals since 2013.

During his decade of service at Leeds Julian led a major programme of culture change and staff engagement to deliver improved quality, operational and financial performance. In 2019 Julian was asked to be the executive lead for the interim NHS People Plan by Baroness Dido Harding, chair of NHS Improvement, having previously worked as managing director of NHS Improving Quality – a national organisation set up to drive change and improvement across the NHS.

Julian’s career in the NHS began as a general management trainee working in the North East of England. Following his training, he worked in a number of NHS management posts at hospital, health authority and regional level. His first board director appointment was at North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust, where he was responsible for planning, operations and strategy.

Julian was awarded Knight Bachelor for services to healthcare in the 2022 Queen’s Birthday Honours.