Karen Turner
Lay Trustee
Karen Turner is the Director, Prevention for NHS England and NHS Improvement and was appointed following the launch of the NHS Long Term Plan to lead the implementation of the prevention ambitions. Prior to this Karen was Director of Mental Health for NHS England between 2015 – 2018, a post established to provide leadership in the expansion and improvement of mental health services within the NHS. In this role she established the Mental Health Taskforce and oversaw the development of the Five Year Forward View for Mental Health, securing unprecedented funding for the first wave of expansion in mental health services. Before this she worked for over 30 years in health: her career has included time in hospitals, health and local authorities, regions and the Department of Health where she worked in the Teenage Pregnancy Unit and on children’s and mental health policy.
Karen was appointed as an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in June 2018.