Patricia Moberly

Patricia Jane Moberly (née Coney; 20 October 1938 – 2 September 2016) was a British public servant, Labour politician, activist, and teacher. She is best known for her work as Chair of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust between 1999 and 2011.

Moberly was born in Fareham, Hampshire. Her father was in the Royal Navy meaning that the family moved around a lot. She was educated at seven schools, including a boarding school during her teenage years. Despite the disapproval of her father, she studied English at the University of Liverpool. She would later return to her studies, attending King's College London, and completed a doctorate in 1985.

Moberly married in 1959. Her husband was an Anglican priest and she followed him to Northern Rhodesia when he was posted to a parish there. During her time in the country, that would soon become the independent Zambia, she taught at local schools and became involved in anti-racist politics. She became one of the few white women to join the United National Independence Party.

The family moved back to England in 1967 when Moberly's husband became vicar of a church in the Diocese of Southwark. She continued her career in teaching, working at three different schools over a more than thirty-year period. Her last position before retirement was as Head of Sixth Form at Pimlico School. While teaching, she continued being politically active: she served as a Labour councillor, was active in the Anti-Apartheid Movement, and was even arrested in the 1970s during a protest outside Downing Street.

Moberly was also a prolific public servant. She served on her local Area Health Authority in the 1970s and then on its successor the District Health Authority in the 1980s. She also served as a governor of Maudsley Hospital and Bethlem Royal Hospital in the 1970s, and as a governor of the United Medical and Dental Schools of Guy's and St Thomas' Hospitals (UMDS) in the 1980s. Having retired from teaching, she served as the Chair of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust between 1999 and 2011. She additionally served as a lay member of the General Medical Council in the 21st century. Her final public appointment, before retiring due to ill health, was as a member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life.