Age UK Herefordshire & Worcestershire say goodbye to Magda Praill and welcome new CEO Julia Neal in February. The local charity, who supported over 15,000 people over 50 in the two counties last year, will miss the experienced and dedicated Magda. She came back from retirement as a 3-month interim CEO in December 2019 however with the Covid pandemic, stayed on to steer the senior management team through what have been very challenging times. Now ready to enjoy a well-earned retirement, she has been liaising with Julia to ensure a smooth transition.
Julia started her career in nursing and has over thirty years’ experience in a variety of health and care roles including three years with the British Heart Foundation and 5 years as a director of a medical education charity. She recently returned to the NHS in a senior commissioning role for Herefordshire and Worcestershire CCG. Julia has a passion for helping people to live well at the end of their life, and volunteers as a Trustee for KEMP Hospice.
“I am delighted to be starting as the new CEO for Age UK H&W and I’m very much looking forward to working with the team to build on the excellent services provided.” said Julia. “Support for older people, their families and carers is needed now, more than ever before, as we recover from the pandemic. The challenges we face can only be achieved by working together, and the new NHS Integrated Care Partnership is a real opportunity to develop more joined up services for our communities and to make Herefordshire and Worcestershire an even better place to grow older.”
Magda commented “It has been a privilege and a pleasure to return to Age UK once again. Although it has been a challenging two years through the pandemic, our great team of staff and volunteers never cease to offer support whilst developing new approaches such as our Companion Line and helping older people to develop much needed digital skills.”
If you would like to know more about the work of Age UK Herefordshire and Worcestershire, please get in touch with us on 0800 008 6077 or email referralhub@ageukhw.org.uk. You’ll also find all the details on our website ageukhw.org.uk/herefordshireandworcestershire.