Dr Abbie Fordham Barnes is a compassionate, transformational, and values-driven leader. She has been a registered nurse for over 30 years and has a strong record of senior leadership and management in higher education for over 25 years, with specific experience in nursing and midwifery education, external partnerships and workforce planning, quality assurance and governance, practice learning and placements, safeguarding, and fitness to practise for the discipline of health.

She joined Buckinghamshire New University in April 2025 as the Dean of the College of Health and Society, working with the university executive team, stakeholders, external partners, and colleagues as the College transitions to the College of Health and Society. With over 3,500 students and 200 staff, the health and society programmes form the largest college in the university, offering undergraduate and postgraduate programmes for home and international students. This leadership role identifies areas of growth and monitors enhancement by developing and implementing innovative approaches for improving quality, motivating and leading the team to deliver research-led and transformative education, demonstrated through inclusive student success and transformational change.

Dr Fordham Barnes has been delivering excellent undergraduate and postgraduate education that meets the requirements of education commissioners, partners, and professional, statutory, and regulatory bodies. This has required a deep appreciation of systems and professional ethics, as well as the ability to build and cultivate effective relationships with stakeholders. A key quality is her ability to work with academic and practice colleagues in a highly collaborative manner. She has a sustained track record of identifying areas for enhancement, developing, and implementing innovative approaches for improving quality, by motivating and leading the team to deliver research-led and transformative education, demonstrated through enhanced student experience, inclusive student success and outcomes, and transformational change. She has extensive experience analysing and presenting complex data, writing reports, and presenting at senior executive level.

She has successfully embedded a culture of learning in a large organisation, with a commitment to quality assurance, innovation, and improvement which led to lasting change. This work has been supported by her role as a Specialist Advisor for the Care Quality Commission, the independent regulator of health and adult social care in England, who monitor, inspect, and regulate health and social care services to provide people with safe, effective, compassionate, high-quality care and encourage care services to improve. The role of the Specialist Advisor is to focus on specific lines of enquiry and report back to the team through corroboration meetings during the inspection. The Specialist Advisor is also expected to make records in accordance with CQC methodology and provide these at the end of the inspection visit to the lead inspector. Specialist Advisors use their professional skills, experience, and expertise by focusing on the key lines of enquiry. She has been a registrant panel member on the Fitness to Practise Committee for the Nursing Midwifery Council in the UK. The NMC fitness to practise panel’s role is to protect the public by determining if a nurse, midwife, or nursing associate is fit to practise, making fair and proportionate decisions based on evidence, and imposing necessary restrictions on their practice. Panels consist of three independent members—including registrants and lay people—who evaluate evidence using the balance of probabilities and decide on actions to maintain public safety.

She has experience co-creating, implementing, and evaluating strategic policies and procedures, recognised by her Principal Fellowship with Advanced HE. She is currently the Principal Investigator for a multi-regional research project commissioned by NHS England and is a Visiting Professor at the University of Chester, Westminster Centre for Research in Veterans, University of Chester, which supports the Armed Forces community through research, educational provision, and community engagement. In July 2022, Birmingham hosted the XXII Commonwealth Games, where she worked as the Deputy Poly Clinic Manager responsible for all elements of healthcare delivery and management at one of the Polyclinics across the three Commonwealth Games Villages, meeting the requirements of the Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF). The Polyclinics were the primary healthcare facilities for athletes and team officials who required medical assessment and treatment throughout the Games period. The role involved working with and managing a significant number of medical and allied health professionals from a wide range of disciplines to ensure the delivery of a high-quality health care service.

She acts as a change agent to identify areas for improvement to help understand the future needs of the workforce, find solutions and methods for improving quality, ensuring continuous improvement through identification of organisational learning. She is passionate about supervision and assessment, coaching, mentoring, and supporting others.

A thought leader grounded in compassion and evidence, Dr Fordham Barnes exemplifies the synergy between education and regulation in achieving quality care. She is honoured to support the NouZetwals Health and Social Care Excellence Awards in recognising the individuals who shape healthcare with intellect, integrity, and heart.