APCP National Committee

The day-to-day affairs of APCP are managed by the National Committee which consists of up to 16 nationally elected members plus a locally elected representative from each of APCP's Regions and a representative from each of APCP's Specialist Committees.

The objectives and strategies for APCP are set out in the APCP Five Year Plan.  

The National Committee meet four times each year to ensure that the Association is effectively functioning in pursuance of these objectives and strategies.

APCP Research Officer - Jane Simmonds

Jane Simmonds
Jane Simmonds

Jane Simmonds is Associate Professor (Teaching) and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Authority. Jane leads the MSc Advanced Physiotherapy at Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London. She is an active researcher and has 30 years of clinical experience as a specialist musculoskeletal physiotherapist and 20 years of teaching in higher education and to patient groups. Jane is passionate about improving health and healthcare through application of clinically reasoned, evidence-based practice and quality education.

Jane has published ten book chapters and co-authored more than 80 peer reviewed articles and conference abstracts. She has been the recipient of more than £350, 000 of physiotherapy related research and education grants. She regularly reviews grant submissions and abstracts for national and international conferences and journals. Jane  is a member of the APCP editorial  journal group and an international advisor for the Musculoskeletal Science and Practice Journal. Jane is the Allied Health representative of the scientific and medical board of the Ehlers Danlos Society and physiotherapy advisor to several patient charities including PoTSUK, HMSA and EDS Support UK.

Contact: research@apcp.org.uk


 

APCP Education Officer - Heather Foster

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Heather’s first career was as an Army Officer where she represented the army in running, squash and riding. Her love of Sport led her to train as a physiotherapist and she graduated from Southampton University in 1998.

Having completed her clinical rotations in the NHS she re-joined the Army and was commissioned into the Royal Army Medical Corps where she travelled extensively providing Physiotherapy support to service personnel including elite sportsmen and women. 

Leaving the Army on the birth of her son, Heather then owned and managed her own Physiotherapy and Sports Injury Clinic before joining CircleBath in 2010, where she also works as a Clinical Specialist providing Outpatient Orthopaedic support to the Circle Bath Orthopaedic Consultants.

Heather is also currently studying for an MSc in the assessment and treatment of sporting children and adolescents.  She is passionate about providing quality evidence based treatment for this specialised group of patients.

Contact: education@apcp.org.uk

 


 

APCP Publications Officer - Rachel Knight Lozano

Rachel Knight-Lozano

Rachel Knight Lozano is a Lecturer in Rehabilitation, delivering postgraduate education to physiotherapists and other allied health clinician's at the University of Plymouth.   

Rachel qualified as a chartered physiotherapist in 2006 and has worked in the UK National Health Service for the last 15 years. In 2010, Rachel specialised in children's physiotherapy, gaining extensive clinical experience in a wide range of paediatric specialities. This included oncology care at the Teenage Cancer Trust, University College London, cardiorespiratory and developmental care at the Children’s Heart Unit, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, in addition to neonatal, musculoskeletal, orthopaedic and neurology speciality care, working in acute and community services across the UK.

Rachel completed an MSc in Advanced Paediatric Practice in 2016 and continues her research activity through multiple research grant awards, including the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy Charitable Trust Novice Research Award (2019), the National Institute of Health Research Pre-doctoral Clicnial Academic Fellowship Award (2021) and most recently, the Arts Health Interdiscplinary Fund (2022). Rachel is dedicated to undertaking interdisciplinary and participatory paediatric research alongside children with neurodisabilities and their families, with a special interest in posture, movement and respiratory health promotion. 

Contact: publications@apcp.org.uk


APCP NICE Guidelines Officer - Virginia Knox

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Virginia Knox

Virginia Knox is a Paediatric Physiotherapist with over30 years’ experience working with children with cerebral palsy, both in the UK National Health Service and a specialist cerebral palsy charity and she now leads a community paediatric team at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital. Research interests include standardised outcome measurement and determining efficacy of therapy, publishing in many peer reviewed journals.  Virginia has Masters’ degrees in Clinical Neuroscience and Research, a Post Graduate Certificate in Education and is a paediatric Bobath tutor. She trains therapists in using outcome measures and assessment and treatment of children with cerebral palsy, throughout the UK and internationally, including several developing countries.

Contact: nice@apcp.org.uk


 

APCP Public Relations Officer (PRO) - Jemma Bell

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Jemma Bell

Jemma is APCP’s Public Relations Officer and a Paediatric Physiotherapist within the Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust.

After qualifying from Northumbria University in 2013, Jemma completed her junior rotations at South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. Jemma made the move back to Newcastle upon Tyne in 2015, and secured her position within paediatric physiotherapy in 2016. Jemma has worked within a diverse range of different positions across the breadth of paediatric physiotherapy.

In 2019, Jemma undertook a Masters in Public Health and Health Services Research. Completing this Masters training, has further fuelled Jemma’s desire to use paediatric physiotherapy knowledge to help improve population health outcomes and reduce health inequalities. Jemma completed her Masters dissertation, Moving Towards a Fairer Future, that explored early life movement and physical activity inequalities.

Jemma joined APCP North East Regional Committee in November 2017 to develop paediatric physiotherapy services across the North East of England. Jemma then moved onto APCP national committee in 2018, taking on the Public Relations Officer Role in March 2020.  Since, Jemma has shown her leadership in various APCP activities including the following, the Starting2Move Project, a review of paediatric physiotherapy in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (https://www.csp.org.uk/news/2020-12-09-apcp-report-provides-valuable-insights-experiences-physios-during-covid-19), representing APCP at the CSP Annual Representatives Conference, and shaping our communications strategy.

Jemma has also held various awards, including the following:

National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Internship – 2018

British Academy for Childhood Disability-Castang Research Fellowship - 2019

NIHR Pre-doctoral Clinical Academic Fellowship – 2019

Jemma developed, and leads, APCP’s Starting2Move Project – Funded by the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy through professional network funding.

 


 

APCP Journal Editor - Claire Kerr

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Claire Kerr

Dr. Claire Kerr worked in a number of clinical and research physiotherapy posts before commencing as a Lecturer in the School of Nursing and Midwifery at Queen's University Belfast.  She leads an active program of research that focuses on the health, well-being and provision of clinical services for children and young people with physical disabilities. 

Claire has a particular interest in the efficacy of therapeutic interventions for people with cerebral palsy and optimal service delivery for this population. She currently holds a British Academy of Childhood Disability-Castang Foundation Fellowship in Childhood Neurodisability and is an Honorary Research Fellow of Murdoch Children's Research Institute, Melbourne, Australia.

Contact: journal@apcp.org.uk


Deputy Journal Editor- Rachel Rapson


National Committee Member- Madelaine Rapier


National Committee Member- Kim Dean

 

Kim Dean

Since qualifying in 2008 Kim has worked exclusively within paediatrics as this was always her dream career. She worked across most areas of paediatrics before specialising in under 5’s in 2015. She currently works as a Band 8a paeds physio at The Rotherham NHS Foundation Trust. Alongside her NHS career Kim uses her personal and professional knowledge to assist charities supporting individuals with skeletal dysplasia including DSAUK and LPUK.

Away from work Kim is a para powerlifter. She competes for GB and will be representing the Isle of Man at the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games


National Committee Member- Hilary Finlay


APCP Special Committee Representatives

CPIP-UK National Network

 

Philippa Burgess

MSK Committee

Vic Harbottle

Neonatal Committee

Charlotte Xanthidis

Neurodisability Committee

Anne McNee

Neuromuscular Committee

Julie Burslem

PPIPS Committee

Gomathi Murugesan

Respiratory Committee

Laura Lowndes