Harriman will succeed Alex Whitfield, who will be stepping down at the end of October.

She served as a nurse in the Royal Navy for more than 15 years, joined the NHS in 2002 as a nurse consultant in infection prevention, and has held senior executive roles within the NHS in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. She was chief executive of Solent NHS Trust for seven years, before joining Bath and North East Somerset, Swindon and Wiltshire ICB as chief executive. She has also contributed at a national level, serving as chief operating officer for the Covid-19 vaccination deployment programme.

Martin Earwicker, chair of Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, said: ‘Sue is a compassionate and values-driven leader. She brings a wealth of experience and a clear focus on working with patients, staff, partnership organisations and the wider community to deliver outstanding, safe care with excellent patient outcomes.

‘I am confident that she will build on our foundations and lead the trust into its next chapter; pursuing our shared ambition to be the best possible organisation for the people who work at the heart of the trust and the patients we care for.'

Harriman said: ‘I promise I will build on the strong foundations of compassion, integrity and outstanding care to lead the trust through a challenging time for the NHS and in response to the NHS 10-Year Health Plan.

‘Hampshire Hospitals has an important and unique role to play as part of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Integrated Care System. Working alongside our patients, their families and system partners in health and care we have exciting opportunities to reform how we deliver our services to meet the changing needs of our local population.'

Harriman will join Hampshire Hospitals in early October.