CPLSC Staff

Executive Chair - Kath Gulson

Kath Gulson has a wide range of experience working across community pharmacy and local pharmaceutical committees (LPC). She joined Community Pharmacy Lancashire & South Cumbria as CEO, from Halton St Helens Knowsley LPC where she was a job share Chief Officer; having Chaired this LPC for a period of 9 years as a CCA representative from Boots. She has been the Vice Chair of Stockport LPC, sat on Ashton, Leigh and Wigan LPC and been a member of Community Pharmacy Greater Manchester (CPGM) as they worked with the Health and Social Care teams raising the profile and role of community pharmacy within the development of devolution. Kath worked for Boots across the UK, in a wide variety of roles, from Pharmacist to General Manager, Area Management, and Healthcare Development including a community pharmacy based clinical trial, the Community Pharmacy Futures project, working with local authorities and with primary and secondary care healthcare professionals. Kath truly believes in the power of the LPC network to really influence the role of community pharmacies and pharmacists both on the ground, and upwards, which is why she has been so heavily involved in the world of the LPCs. She joined CPL as Chief Executive Officer in 2016 and became Executive Chair for the Committee in February 2022, having also taken up the post of Chair for the Local Professional Network for Pharmacy across NHSE&I Lancashire and South Cumbria.

Chief Executive - Mubasher Ali

Mubasher Ali - Mubasher’s previous experience over the years include a vast array of roles and responsibilities at senior level leadership within the Community Pharmacy sector, spanning multiple NHS Regional footprints as well as holding both External and Internal facing roles, whilst always maintaining direct contact with ground level pharmacy provision. His portfolio also includes association with multiple LPCs across the North and collaborative working across healthcare and public sector providers as well as a strong track record of achieving major multi-site transformational projects, encompassing, IT integration, Portfolio planning, Commercial streamlining efficiencies and more.

Vice Chair - Michael Ball

I am a fiercely passionate advocate for community pharmacy and in showcasing its ever expanding potential to seize opportunities that can address the challenges that our NHS, and citizens accessing its services, currently face. My experience over the last 13 years within independent pharmacy practice, with the last four as a business owner, has equipped me with the skills and network that I believe has allowed my to effectively support and represent my peers as one of their elected members during the last 9 years of my time on the board. Undoubtedly community pharmacy is at a major crossroads, and the next four years are, in my opinion, incredibly critical. As a consequence, the newly formed board needs the right balance in terms of experience, skill mix and energy, and I believe I can contribute on all of these to ensure the right and effective strategic leadership. I am not afraid of making the difficult decisions, and campaigning for what our many brilliant contractors and their teams rightfully deserve in terms of the appropriate opportunities and importantly, the recognition for their contribution. I will ensure we work tirelessly at a local, regional and national level to lobby for the interests of community pharmacy to reach its potential. I will set high expectations to ensure we position ourselves as an equal partner amongst all stakeholders across the complex and ever evolving nature of NHS organisations. We will continue to be the ever present trusted partner, whilst we persist with our messaging that this MUST be valued considerably more than it currently is. Whilst we continue to pressurise for significant uplifts financially across both nationally and locally commissioned services, it is also somewhat necessary that we carefully demonstrate our potential to make significant contribution to clinical service delivery from our ideally located pharmacy practices. With this in mind, it is also a key priority of mine for my own pharmacy team, and to support all my community pharmacy colleagues, that we seek to engage in how best to transition into these new models of working. Reviewing all of our systems and processes to seek out where efficiencies and capacity can be yielded is also a ‘must do’ whilst we also remain at the negotiating table to improve how our value is perceived. I hope I am able to continue to contribute by representing and supporting my peers across Lancashire & South Cumbria, and I am grateful to my own pharmacy team that I can be afforded the time to prioritise working on behalf of the sector, to maximise professional fulfilment alongside improving access to great healthcare for citizens.

Treasurer - Ben Fell

Ben Fell is an independent contractor in Carnforth. He strives to be the best he can to achieve everything he can for patients and contractors.  As with most pharmacists, the patients are his priority and getting the best for them in the NHS is his goal.  As community pharmacists, they are also part of a commercial arrangement working with the NHS and Ben believes he should be fairly reimbursed for the value he adds to the NHS.  Alongside his colleagues on the LPC they will make the voice of local pharmacy heard to make a difference for our community.

LPC Senior Business Support Officer - Naomi Parker

Naomi is new to the pharmacy sector and is dedicated to providing the best support for contractors and patients alike within Lancashire & South Cumbria. Naomi provides efficiency and organisation to ensure the operational management within the team.

Business Support Officer - Hannah Caulton