A former nurse who has worked in public health all over the world is set to be named Cheshire West and Chester's new health supremo.  

Professor Helen Bromley has been nominated to replace Ian Ashworth as the borough's Director of Public Health, with her appointment set to be rubber-stamped by a meeting of Full Council next Thursday. 

Her career began in nursing before she moved into academic and international public health, working in some of the world’s poorest regions for more than 20 years.

She joined Cheshire West and Chester Council in 2013 as a consultant in Public Health and was recently appointed as interim Director of Public Health to cover the role, pending arrangements for permanent recruitment.

She has also been a Visiting Professor at the University of Chester since 2014.

Cllr Lisa Denson, Cabinet Member for a Fairer Future (Poverty, Public Health and Mental Health), said: “There was an extensive and rigorous recruitment process to find our new Director of Public Health.

“All the way through this Helen demonstrated her great experience in Public Health, her leadership and her ambitions to build on the positive relationships that the council already has with health services and other partners in the borough.”

Helen added: “I’m delighted to be appointed as the Director of Public Health for Cheshire West and Chester.

“I’m passionate about maximising the health and wellbeing of our residents and reducing health and social inequalities across the borough.

“These will remain my priorities as Director of Public Health, and I am looking forward to working closely with teams and services across the entire council, as well as external partners to achieve this.”

The council's former director of public health Mr Ashworth recently left to take up a similar position at NHS Cheshire and Merseyside.

Directors of public health are accountable for the delivery of public health responsibilities in their area, while also providing expert guidance to councillors and council officers. Their roles cover health improvement, health protection and public health.