The board of Voluntary Health Scotland (VHS), which represents Scotland's third sector health and social care organisations, has revealed the charity's new chief executive.

Tejesh Mistry, most recently Interim Director for Voluntary Action South Lanarkshire and, until last summer, Director of External Affairs at Venture Trust, will take over from Claire Stevens who retires at the end of March after 12 years at the helm of VHS.

VHS chair, Christine Carlin, says the organisation is delighted to be able to make the appointment:

“Tejesh brings a wealth of experience from his previous senior roles in the Third Sector. He has an excellent record of building positive relationships, and brings strong knowledge of membership organisations.

"Tejesh has a deep understanding of, and demonstrates a great passion for, tackling inequalities among disadvantaged communities, both in the UK and abroad.

“We look forward to him leading our excellent team, in what will be an exciting year for VHS as we celebrate our 20^th anniversary.”

Mr Mistry says he is looking forward to working with VHS and its members and supporting the health and wellbeing of people across Scotland:

"I'm immensely passionate about the tireless work Voluntary Health Scotland's members are doing to address the health inequalities that continue to exist within disadvantaged communities.

“I'm excited to continue this momentum, working closely in partnership alongside members and policymakers to improve the wellbeing of people in Scotland for the future."

Before joining Venture Trust, Mr Mistry held senior roles with the Royal Voluntary Service and Cycling Scotland and was appointed to the board of Sport Scotland in April 2022.

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