Pritchard is currently chief executive of NHS England, a post she has held since August 2021, and was previously chief operating officer.

She was chief executive of Guy's and St Thomas' from October 2015 to August 2019. She will return to an expanded trust after it merged with Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals in February 2021.

She joined Guy's and St Thomas' as chief operating officer in April 2012. Prior to this, she held several senior positions at Chelsea and Westminster NHS Foundation Trust and worked in the Prime Minister's Delivery Unit.

Charles Alexander, chairman of Guy's and St Thomas', said: ‘We were extremely impressed by Amanda's enthusiasm, energy and commitment to the future success of Guy's and St Thomas'. She will return to a very different organisation from the one that she left six years ago and clearly demonstrated her vision and support for our ambitious plans, combined with the need to lead transformational change at pace.

‘We and our local healthcare and academic partners are fortunate that we will be able to benefit from the significant experience that Amanda has acquired during her time at NHS England as she returns to a role in frontline healthcare delivery.'

Pritchard said: ‘Guy's and St Thomas' is one of the country's leading providers and I am very much looking forward to connecting with colleagues old and new as, together, we work to improve and transform the experiences of our staff and patients.'

In her current role Amanda led the NHS response to the Omicron wave of the COVID-19 pandemic, oversaw the roll out of the booster vaccine, and subsequently led the recovery from the inevitable impact of the pandemic. She developed the first NHS Long Term Workforce Plan and drove major improvements in the NHS digital infrastructure.

Pritchard replaces Professor Ian Abbs.