BSP Council

BSP Council held their final meeting for 2024 in London this week. 

It was an opportunity to thank Professor Wendy Turner for her hard work serving the Society as Honorary Secretary for the last four years. Wendy was prasied for her friendly and approachable management style and keeping the interests of the membership and the Society at the heart of all of her decisions. 

Although Wendy steps down from the lead management role, she will continue to support the BSP in ongoing initiatives and will represent the Society at Specialist Advisory Committee meetings. In January, Professor Luigi Nibali will take over the role of BSP Honorary Secretary.

Council also thanked Professor Philip Preshaw for serving at the helm of the Society as President in 2024. Philip was commended for working incredibly hard from day one to meet the needs of the membership. His passion and love for BSP has been evident in everything he has done. He has worked tirelessly replying to member and non-member enquiries, communicating with the members in the monthly newsletters and through his fantatsic contributions to this year's special edition of the periodical magazine. 

Council praised his strong leadership skills in all aspects of Society business. In particular, Philip was lauded for his enthusiasm and drive in leading the Strategic Plan project which has re-focused our strategic priorities. The new five-year plan will help to safeguard the long-term future of the Society and ensure that we continue to be in a strong position moving forwards in terms of structure and governance.

Philip's Conference in Newcastle was also hailed as a great success. His meticulous planning of the event ensured that delegates enjoyed an inspiring educational experience together with wonderful social elements, tipifying the BSP family ethos. 

Although well deserving of a rest, Philip accepted the invitation to remain on Council in the role of Past President. 

As is tradition, the Presidential baton was handed over at the December Council meeting, with Philip passing the Presidential chain to incoming President, Professor Nicola West.  Nicola will take over the Presidential role on 1st January 2025.

Nicola has previously served an eight-year term as Honorary Secretary and has a great understanding of all elements of the Society. Expressing her excitement at taking on the Presidential role, Nicola advised. "I am deeply honoured to be elected as BSP President for 2025. This is the pinnacle of my career and I’m committed to representing the best interests of our entire membership with transparency and accountability. Working as a team is essential, and I hope that my November 2025 Conference will unite the profession and serve as a flagship event for this goal."