This week's North East appointments

Victoria Walker, Ramside Hall Hotel, Golf and Spa

Ramside Hall Hotel, Golf and Spa has appointed Victoria Walker as spa director.

Middlesbrough-born Victoria has spent more than a decade on international cruise ships, initially starting as a therapist and working her way up to become head of sales and revenue for the spas on 14 vessels.

Victoria ran the spas on behalf of OneSpaWorld across the fleet of Holland and Americas cruise ships, and when not travelling across the globe was based in Miami.

Victoria commented: “This is a fantastic spa and I’m delighted to be here. The strange thing was that I’d actually bought some vouchers for myself and a friend to come and have a spa day and then I found out about the job and applied for that instead.

“I’ve given them to my friend and her partner now so they won’t go to waste – and I got the dream job!”

John Adamson, owner of Ramside Hall Hotel, Golf and Spa, added: “Victoria has an amazing amount of experience and knows the spa industry from every single angle.

“We are thrilled to have her as part of our team and we know she’ll do a fantastic job.”

Victoria Simou, SRS Recruitment and Employability Experts

SRS Recruitment and Employability Experts has appointed Victoria Simou as assessment and selection manager.

With a background in occupational psychology, Victoria has over seven years’ experience working with clients to apply behavioural science to design assessment and leadership solutions that transform human behaviour. She has worked across public and private sectors and at various levels of an organisation.

Victoria will lead the design of SRS’s assessment portfolio by developing new products for assessment centres and online selection solutions for universities and employers. She will work with the SRS team to deliver the end to end experience for students, universities, and employers.

Commenting on her appointment, Victoria said: “I am extremely excited to be joining the SRS team!

“In this role, I look forward to bringing expertise and best practice principles in designing assessment solutions from a business psychology perspective, to support the design and development of assessment toolkits for universities and employers.”

Neil Johnson and Jason Knights, Finchale Group

Durham-based charity Finchale Group has appointed Neil Johnson as interim CEO and Jason Knights as chair.

Neil takes the reins with a track record in people service sectors such as employability, educational skills and adult social care. He has previously held senior roles within these sectors including Ingeus UK, Coquet Trust and the Shaw Trust.

Neil commented: “I’m delighted to be able to join this forward-looking team here at The Finchale Group.

“My immediate aim is to couple robust governance with people development to deliver excellent results for our learners, Armed Forces community and our commissioners. It’s important to invest in our people and create the right culture where our people can thrive and that’s why we have brought in our new trustees and chair.”

Jason is the managing director of Blue Kangaroo Design, a Gateshead design agency that works specifically with global entertainment character licensing and toy industry clients including Walt Disney, Universal Studios, Mattel, Tomy,and Warner Bros.

Jason’s business acumen won him a Board of Trade Award and he was made a Northern Powerhouse Export Champion.

Jason commented: “I’m ex-forces myself and I know that The Finchale Group’s history is steeped in helping veterans to adapt and succeed in civilian life.

“I’m keen to use my contacts to further that relationship but also to support other learning programmes such as helping young people become job ready - particularly those with barriers to learning.

“We’re very lucky to have a great team here and facilities second to none including our new construction academy from where we will launch our apprenticeship scheme later this year.”

Phil Middleton and Alex Seaward, Nuffield Health Newcastle Hospital

Nuffield Health Newcastle Hospital in Jesmond has appointed Phil Middleton as hospital director and Alex Seaward as sales and service manager.

Phil is a chartered accountant, spending most of his career in the healthcare sector. He previously worked for Nuffield Health in the North and Midlands supporting hospitals and gyms with finance and commercial operations.

Phil’s new role focuses on all aspects of management, governance, development and service delivery within the hospital to ensure a safe, caring and person-centred service for patients.

Phil said: “Nuffield Health invest in and develop their staff at all levels and my own career has certainly progressed as a result of it.

“Having moved internally into regional and project roles, I’m glad to come back to Newcastle as hospital director and work with some of the same lovely staff and the best consultants in the region.”

Qualified physiotherapist Alex has previously worked for Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Gateshead, Hartlepool United Football Club and Connect Health.

Before joining Nuffield Health Newcastle Hospital, Alex worked with the Care Coordination Centre on improving administrative pathways, onboarding new services and developing the links between the clinical and administrative sides of the business.

Alex commented: “I am passionate about showcasing all of the good work that goes on here at the hospital. My focus is to create a platform to allow that to happen with an eye on the future in terms of developing current services and creating new pathways for patients.

“The whole team here have been amazing. I have felt so welcomed into the role and supported in my ideas to deliver important services to patients across the region.

“It has been an extremely busy time for the hospital, having supported NHS activity for the past few months. The values of the staff and the morale of the teams are incredible to see.”