Dan has been the Managing Director of Beacon since its formation in 2013. Dan has worked in NHS Continuing Healthcare since 2003 when he joined the Thames Valley Strategic Health Authority as part of their newly-established retrospective assessment team, following the landmark Coughlan judgment. In 2005 he joined Age UK Oxfordshire as a CHC advocate, becoming service manager in 2008 and developing a team of specialist caseworkers. In 2013, following the successful expansion of the CHC advocacy service and in response to growing demand outside of the Thames Valley, he worked with a range of third-sector stakeholders to set up Beacon as a national social enterprise.

Dan says:

‘Over the course of my work in CHC I have always been passionate about using our expertise and knowledge of the national picture to help the NHS improve their CHC systems, influence policy and robustly challenge poor practice. This is something I continue to strive to do through our regular engagement with statutory services, media and the PHS Ombudsman, and via the delivery of training.

In the 20+ years I have worked in the field of CHC support and influencing, the most enjoyable part of my work has always been getting to know the people and families that we work with over a long period of time, getting to understand the ‘individual’ behind the assessment and then seeing the result of our collective work as we bring their needs to life through high quality representation. Whilst I miss working directly with those people and families in my current role, I now get to work alongside a team of talented and genuinely caring professionals who are building those same relationships with the families they work with, and to see the positive impact of months or sometimes years of work.’