A former Royal Air Force (RAF) officer has been appointed as the new chair of the UK nursing regulator.
Ron Barclay-Smith will take up the role at the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC) tomorrow, replacing current postholder Sir David Warren.
“We all need to work at pace to develop and improve the NMC”
Ron Barclay-Smith
Mr Barclay-Smith steps into a role at a tumultuous time for the NMC as it looks to fix issues with its internal culture and performance in areas such as fitness to practise (FtP).
The NMC’s failings led to calls for current chair Sir David to resign, which he pushed back against.
In September last year, Sir David announced that he would step down when a successor for him was chosen.
He exits the role having completed the full term for which he was appointed by the NMC privy council, which was June 2021 to March 2025.
Mr Barclay-Smith joins the NMC on 1 April from his current position of chair for the British Transport Police Authority, a role in which he has served since 2018.
His other previous leadership jobs include chief executive of Lincolnshire Health Authority, and chief executive of South Square, a business law chambers in West London.
These roles followed a career in the RAF, from which Mr Barclay-Smith retired as a wing commander.
Ron Barclay-Smith
At the NMC, it will be Mr Barclay-Smith’s role to lead the regulator’s governing council.
Among his key responsibilities will be holding the NMC’s executive team to account for implementing its new cultural transformation plan, improvements to FtP and other priorities.
Mr Barclay-Smith said: “I am delighted to have been appointed to this challenging role.
“I am aware that the NMC is undergoing a comprehensive programme of reform and development, and I look forward to working with council colleagues and stakeholders both within and outside the NMC to help ensure that the NMC is fully fit for purpose and meets its commitments with skill and professionalism.
“We all need to work at pace to develop and improve the NMC, and I look forward to playing my part in that process.”
Paul Rees, NMC interim chief executive and registrar, said Mr Barclay-Smith’s leadership experience would be “critical” in supporting the NMC through the “extensive transformation and modernisation” being sought.
Mr Rees also thanked Sir David for “laying the groundwork for change at the NMC”.
Sir David said it had been a “privilege” to lead the NMC’s council over the last three years and nine months.
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