Duncan Burton appointed Chief Nursing Officer for England

He will succeed Dame Ruth May, who announced her retirement as England's Chief Nursing Officer in April

NHS England has announced the appointment of Duncan Burton as the new Chief Nursing Officer for England, effective immediately.

Duncan will lead the nursing profession and serve as the government’s most senior advisor on nursing matters.

In his most recent position as Deputy Chief Nursing Officer, Burton spearheaded national work on the maternity and neonatal programme, workforce policies and the children and young people’s transformation programme.

Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting extended his congratulations to Duncan Burton on his appointment as Chief Nursing Officer for England, noting that his extensive experience will be invaluable as a key advisor for NHS England and ministers.

He emphasised the importance of involving nurses in writing the 10-Year Plan to ensure the NHS is fit for the future, with the Chief Nursing Officer playing a central role in this process.

Additionally, he expressed gratitude to Dame Ruth May for her remarkable 40 years of dedication and service to the health service.

Commenting on his new appointment, Duncan said: “It’s an honour to be appointed to the role of Chief Nursing Officer for England and I look forward to working with nursing and midwifery colleagues to improve patient care and experience, improve the nation’s health, grow and develop the workforce and inspire the next generation of nursing and midwifery professionals and leaders.”

Burton has more than 25 years of experience in nursing. He began his career in respiratory medicine and neurology at the Royal United Hospital in Bath following completion of his nurse training at the University of Wales.

He has held a range of senior positions at University College London Hospitals including Head of Nursing for Medicine, Divisional Senior Nurse for Emergency Services, Modern Matron for Infection and Pathology, and Charge Nurse within the Acute Admissions Unit – before becoming their Deputy Chief Nurse.

Duncan then served as Executive Director of Nursing and Patient Experience and Director of Infection Prevention and Control at Kingston Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. There, led the successful development and implementation of the trust’s award-winning dementia strategy.

Prior to joining NHS England in 2019 as Chief Nurse for the South-east region, Duncan was the Executive Director of Nursing and Quality at Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust. In this role, he was responsible for the professional leadership of 4,000 nurses, midwives, and allied health professionals.

Amanda Pritchard, chief executive of NHS England, congratulated Duncan and emphasised the significance of his appointment for both patients and the workforce.

“His extensive experience in local, regional and national roles, along with his track record of delivery and leadership will be invaluable as he takes on this role at such a crucial time.”

“Duncan has consistently achieved exceptional results – from the International Recruitment Nurse Programme, which ensured we met the 50k nurse commitment 6 months early, to the Health Care Support Worker recruitment programme, which resulted in the highest number of healthcare support staff employed in the NHS on record,” she said.

Amanda thanked Dame Ruth May for her dedication and commitment to the NHS, stating that she has worked tirelessly to “nurture the next generations of NHS nursing and midwifery leaders, and supported nurses, nursing associates, midwives and healthcare support staff to do their very best for patients and their families, and I wish her all the very best for her retirement.”