Dr Joy Tweed, LOCSU Board Chair
Joy is an experienced non-executive director who has served on various boards in the healthcare sector continuously since 2002. She is a currently a non-executive director at the Academy of Healthcare Science and Chair-designate of the Regulation Board (from 1 August 2023). Joy is also leading on a project on very senior leadership development within clinical science.
Joy was a non-executive director for a Primary Care Trust (2002–2013) and at the Health and Care Professions Council (2009–2016). She has Chaired various key committees, including Chair of the Education Committee at the Health and Care Professions Council (2013–2016), Chair of the Lay Advisory Group at the Royal College of Ophthalmology (2017–2019) and co-Chair of the Clinical Governance and Quality Committee at St Raphael’s Hospice, where Joy was a director until 2022.
Joy has an academic background and has led Masters modules on leadership at Westminster Business School as well as being part of the MBA course team. She was previously a course leader for an MSc in healthcare leadership and governance. Joy was also involved in academic leadership development at the University of Westminster, and her interests include leadership and governance within the public, non-profit and social enterprise sectors.
Joy has an MA from the University of Westminster and a PhD from Birkbeck, University of London. She’s also a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy.
Read more
Wendy Andrusco, Company Secretary
Wendy Andrusco qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2003 and is Company Secretary of the LOC Support Unit.
She is the Finance Director at the Association of Optometrists having joined the AOP in 2014. Prior to joining the AOP, she worked for KPMG LLP spending a number of years working within the audit division on a variety of assignments before specialising in the insurance sector followed by 4 years in the restructuring division working with middle market companies in financial distress.
Read more
Alistair Bridge, Non-Executive Director (ABDO)
Alistair Bridge is the Chief Executive of the Association of British Dispensing Opticians, which is the professional body for dispensing opticians and contact lens opticians in the UK.
Alistair began his career as a solicitor in private practice before holding senior roles at the communications regulator Ofcom and serving as Executive Director of the Communications Consumer Panel, the statutory advocacy body for consumers. He then became Director of Strategy at the General Optical Council, the regulator for dispensing opticians, optometrists and optical businesses. Alistair has a master’s degree in organisational consultancy and was a trustee of Vision UK.
Read more
Sofia Fazal, Non-Executive Director (Clinical). LOCSU Board Liaison London and South West LOC Regional Forums
Sofia is an optometrist who has worked across various sectors of optometry, providing eyecare and professional services across the UK and globally. She has experience of working as an educator, experienced lecturer, and leading projects for clinical and commercial initiatives.
Millie Fellows, Non-Executive Director (Clinical). LOCSU Remuneration Committee Chair and LOCSU Board Liaison North West LOC Regional Forum
Millie is a dispensing optician from Oxfordshire, Secretary for her LOC, and experienced Practice Leader of over 25 years. Millie held many roles in a large multiple before moving to independent practice in the last 4 years, she also recently qualified as an Assoc CIPD in Human Resource Management.
Max Halford, Non-Executive Director (ABDO)
Max is a Contact Lens Optician and accredited MECS practitioner working in the South West.
He is the Clinical Lead for the Association of British Dispensing Opticians (ABDO), and Chair of Devon Local Optical Committee. Max is also a Clinical Governance and Performance Lead and Director of his local Primary Eyecare Company and also sits on NHS England’s Local Eyecare Team Liaison Group.
Read more
Peter Hampson, Non-Executive Director (AOP)
Peter is an optometrist in independent practice and Clinical and Professional Director of the Association of Optometrists (AOP).
He is also a specialist module leader for Cardiff University and Co-Chair of the sector Information and IT committee as well as a member of Sandwell LOC.
Read more
David Hewlett, Non-Executive Director (FODO)
David is Group Director for Leadership, Transformation and Strategic Partnerships for the Federation of (Ophthalmic and Dispensing) Opticians which represents the UK optical market. Before that he worked for 20 years in central Government, primarily in the Department of Health and Social Security, where he was the senior policy-maker on family health services, GP commissioning, a primary care led NHS and national health service frameworks.
Prior to that, David had trained as a medieval linguist lecturing at Montpellier and Cambridge Universities. He has a background in, and experience of, small business.
Read more
Sarah Joyce, Non-Executive Director (FODO). LOCSU Audit Committee Chair
Sarah is an optometrist who has extensive experience working across independent and multiple practices.
Over the last seven years she has held leadership roles within the Professional Services and Compliance team at ASDA Opticians – leading on governance, training and audit, and has been the Superintendent Optometrist for the last three years. She is also the GOC responsible officer the company. She also has extensive Board level experience as a NED at FODO and participating in other industry working groups and committees.
Read more
Roma Malik, Non-Executive Director (Clinical). National LOC Forum Chair, LOCSU Board Liaison North East & Yorkshire and South East LOC Regional Forums
Roma is an optometrist working in community practice and is also Chair of Nottinghamshire LOC. She’s been an Optometric Advisor to the General Optical Council (GOC) since 2016 and has over 14 years of experience working in various roles within the field of optometry including teaching, training, compliance, governance, and regulation.
Anne Marie Millar, Non-Executive Director. LOCSU Audit Committee Finance
Anne Marie Millar is a qualified accountant and experienced Finance Director who has operated at Board level for large and complex public sector organisations in Health, Transport and Environment. She is a Board Trustee and Audit Chair at the Royal College of Physicians and sits on a number of other Audit Committees.
Adam Sampson, Non-Executive Director (AOP)
Adam has been Chief Executive of the AOP since 2021. Prior to that, he has had a varied career largely in the public and voluntary sectors. Following a period as an academic and a probation officer, he was actively involved in penal reform following the prison riots of the early 1990s, first as a campaigner and then helping to establish the Prisons Ombudsman.
After spending a period running an addictions charity, he spent seven years as CEO of Shelter, where he was closely involved in Government housing policy. He was then asked to set up and run the first Legal Ombudsman service, before leaving his role as Chief Ombudsman to set up his own consultancy business, where his varied client list included MasterCard, Which? and the Cabinet Office. He has continuing roles as independent assessor for the Housing Ombudsman and is an Associate at the Oxford University Centre for Socio-Legal Studies.
Read more
Jagdeep Singh, Non-Executive Director (Clinical). LOCSU Board Liaison Midlands and East of England LOC Regional Forums
Jagdeep is an independent prescribing optometrist with Professional Certificates in Glaucoma, Medical Retina and Low Vision. He currently works a Specialist Optometrist at Royal Shrewsbury Hospital and as Head of New Clinical Services and Pathway Development at Specsavers.
He’s been an active member of Shropshire LOC since 2019 and was elected a College of Optometrists Council Member in 2021.
Read more
