Tracy Allen

Chief Executive Officer, Derbyshire Community Health Services Foundation Trust

Jim Austin became chief executive of Derbyshire Community Health Services (DCHS) in September 2024, after having served as an executive director on the Trust Board for the previous nine years. He joined DCHS in 2015, following a year-long induction through the NHS executive fast track programme, attached to Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust.

Before joining the NHS, Jim spent 20 years in the private sector, including seven years as the sales and customer service director at the AA, responsible for over 2,500 people. In his private sector roles, which also included financial services and telecommunications, he led and implemented wide-spread change and transformation, to improve customer experience and meet demanding financial constraints. He started his career as a commissioned officer in the Royal Artillery and served both in the UK and abroad.

As an executive director with DCHS, Jim has played a pivotal role in digital and technological developments in local healthcare, including a dual role as chief digital and technology officer (a non-voting executive member) of NHS Derby and Derbyshire Integrated Care Board. He is a fellow of the British Computer Society (the chartered institute for IT) and has completed an MSc in digital health leadership.