Appointments Board
The Appointments Board is composed entirely of independent members, and it advises the Council on the appointment of panel members and legal assessors to the Practice Committees, and the appointment of registration appeal panel members to the Registration Appeals Panel.
This includes approving policies governing recruitment and selection, induction and development, appraisal, performance management, remuneration and contractual arrangements.
Read the Appointment Board's terms of reference (page 32) to find out more about their responsibilities.
Annual reports
The Board reports annually to the Council on their work.
Appointments Board annual report 2022-2023
Appointments Board annual report 2021-2022
Appointments Board annual report 2020-2021
Appointments Board annual report 2019-2020
Appointments Board annual report 2018-2019
Members
Surinder Birdi (Chair)
Surinder is a senior HR leader with experience in automotive, public sector and regulated financial organisations and Board experience in commercial and not for profit sectors.
He is currently HR Director, Manufacturing and Employee Relations at Ford Britain, having held various HR roles at Ford Motor Company Ltd since 2001 where he also sits as a Director at Ford Halewood Transmissions Ltd. He was also a Director at Quick Lane Europe Ltd.
In November 2023, Surinder became a non-executive director at Kingston and Richmond NHS Foundation Trust. In addition to serving as Chair of the Appointments Board, since September 2025 he has been a Trustee of the NMC’s defined benefit pension scheme. In September 2025 he was appointed as an Independent Governor at the University of Greenwich. Surinder has also served as a Director at the Centre for Engineering and Manufacturing Excellence.
Appointed 1 July 2023
Chair from 6 August 2024
Ken Batty
He is currently a Member of Council at Queen Mary, University of London and the Chair of Nominations Committee at the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, both roles he has held since 2021. Ken is also Vice Chair of the Trustee Board at the Inner Circle Educational Trust, Chair of the Trustee Board at Mosaic LGBT+ Young Persons’ Trust and a trustee at Chair of the Trustee BoardDr Frost Learning. Since April 2024 he has been a Non-Executive Director of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust.
Appointed on 1 August 2024
Susan Young
Susan is a senior HR professional with extensive experience in the public sector, including over 20 years as a Director in the NHS and the Civil Service, and three years' experience as an Associate Non-Executive Director in the NHS.
Susan is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development and has her own consultancy business which provides Board level HR consultancy and interim support, as well as Executive coaching and mentoring.
In recent years, Susan has held a number of Interim Executive roles in the NHS across England, mainly as Interim Chief People Officer.
Appointed 6 August 2024
Yasmin Ullah
Yasmin is a senior people practitioner with a significant global HR background in the financial services/financial technology sector.
Yasmin is currently Chief People Officer at CloudMargin Ltd, a role she has held since 2018. Before that Yasmin held a variety of roles including Human Resources Director at Arma Partners (Corporate Finance Advisory Global Digital Economy) from 2012 to 2018.
Yasmin is a Chartered Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD).
Appointed 1 March 2024
