Sarah Woolnough

Who Sarah Woolnough is

Sarah Woolnough is the Chief Executive of The King's Fund, an independent charity working to improve health and care in England, having taken up the post in December 2023. Since joining, she has overseen the development of a new long-term strategy, brand and operating model for the organisation. Previously she was Chief Executive of Asthma + Lung UK, having overseen the merger of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation, and before that spent more than 15 years at Cancer Research UK in senior policy and executive board roles, including a secondment to the Department of Health in 2011 to co-write the National Cancer Strategy. She has a background in policy and influencing, with degrees in government and an MSc in comparative politics. She is publicly known for calling for fundamental social care reform, arguing that the NHS cannot be fixed without also fixing social care, and for setting out tests for the NHS Modernisation Bill.

References for this biography

1. 1.Sarah Woolnough | The King's Fund — Current role, organisation, background at Cancer Research UK, Asthma + Lung UK, DH secondment, educational background, trusteeships and coalition roles
2. 2.Sarah Woolnough Announced As New Chief Executive | The King's Fund — Appointment as Chief Executive of The King's Fund, succession from Richard Murray, career history spanning national charities, civil service and parliament
3. 3.The King's Fund responds to the Prime Minister's comments that the NHS 'will collapse' without adult social care reform — Establishes her as a named public voice on social care reform and the relationship between social care and NHS sustainability
4. 4.Press Centre | The King's Fund — Organisational press contact details (email and phone)
5. 5.THE KING'S FUND – Charity Commission — Confirms registered head office address and postcode: 11-13 Cavendish Square, London W1G 0AN
6. 6.Sarah Woolnough | HFMA — Confirms current role, new strategy development since joining in late 2023, and career background
7. 7.Sarah Woolnough (@swoolnough) / X — Confirms her X/Twitter account, self-described as Chief Executive @TheKingsFund
8. 8.Sarah Woolnough – The King's Fund | LinkedIn — Confirms her LinkedIn account, identified as Chief Executive of The King's Fund

Notable achievements

• Overseen the merger of Asthma UK and the British Lung Foundation to form Asthma + Lung UK, developing a new strategy, brand and operating model as its first Chief Executive Source ↗
• Seconded to the Department of Health in 2011 to write the National Cancer Strategy alongside Professor Sir Mike Richards, the National Cancer Director Source ↗
• Since joining The King's Fund in late 2023, led development of a new long-term strategy, brand and operating model for the organisation Source ↗
• Chaired the Healthy Air Coalition, a collective of leading health and environmental charities campaigning for cleaner air, and served as co-chair of the National Respiratory Delivery Board Source ↗

What Sarah Woolnough has said

• “We welcome the Labour leader's commitment to fixing adult social care. This will go a long way to raising the profile of the issue and give a government the opportunity to bring the country with them in their argument for reform.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Adult social care & reform · 30 Sept 2026 · Andy Burnham is right to make social care an early priority as the UK’s next PM, says Carers UK ↗

• “the free, universal model based on 'NHS principles' that the prime minister proposed will be expensive for the state. But individuals and families are already shouldering these costs themselves because the state does not currently provide adequate support.”

  chief executive of The King's Fund think tank · Adult social care & reform · 30 Sept 2026 · Adass: ‘Care reform cannot wait until next election’ ↗

• “Bringing forward the final report of the Casey Commission by a year is a welcome sign that the Prime Minister wants to move at pace to fix one of the most intractable issues of our time. Our research shows public awareness and understanding of social care is low amongst the public - one in three believe, wrongly, that social care services are generally free at the point of need.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Adult social care & reform · 30 Sept 2026 · The King's Fund responds to the Prime Minister’s speech on adult social care ↗

• “A stronger social care system would also benefit the NHS, reducing avoidable pressures on hospitals and other services.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Elderly care & frailty · 30 Sept 2026 · Proposed national care service ‘utterly essential’ to securing NHS future, says Burnham ↗

• “With life expectancy in the UK among the lowest of most comparable countries, these findings are alarming as many GPs say they are too overwhelmed to carry out these important interventions, and may be missing conditions that could be treated earlier.”

  Chief Executive of the King's Fund health thinktank · Public health & prevention · 30 Sept 2026 · Three in four UK GPs ‘too busy to talk to their patients in depth’ ↗

• “The NHS is now facing a twin crisis with summer joining winter as a major pressure on services and leaving little room for staff and the system to recover between peak periods.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 30 Sept 2026 · NHS waiting list reaches 6.21 million patients after ‘busiest summer in history’ ↗

• “After facing an awful autumn, suffering through the busiest October on record for A&Es, the NHS is now heading into a winter blizzard of pressures because of rising demand, industrial action, and a flu season that could be the worst in years – all of which will have knock-on effects for patient care.”

  chief executive at The King's Fund · A&E & ambulance response · 30 Sept 2026 · Royal Free London hits A&E target ↗

• “It brings into question whether reaching the eventual 92% target by rinsing and repeating this sequence of 'elective sprints' is financially feasible or manageable for already stretched NHS staff.”

  chief executive of the King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 30 Sept 2026 · 'We're right on track,' says Streeting as key target for hospital waiting times hit ↗

• “Meeting the interim 18-week target is a significant achievement and a tribute to the hard work of NHS staff who have had to weather the headwinds of industrial action, increasing demand and the biggest reorganisation of the health service in over a decade.”

  chief executive of the King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 30 Sept 2026 · Latest on North East waiting lists after Wes Streeting claims he hit his NHS targets ↗

• “The same cannot be said for dementia care, with approaches to treatment still stuck in the 20th century.”

  chief executive of think tank the King's Fund · Adult social care & reform · 29 Sept 2026 · Experts urge dementia be given ‘same ambition’ as cancer care ↗

• “It will take a cross-Government approach of tackling and adapting to climate change to protect people from its worst impacts alongside action to keep people healthy and prevent them from needing the health service in the first place when confronted with potentially dangerously high temperatures.”

  chief executive of The King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 29 Sept 2026 · NHS waiting list rises for third time in four months ↗

• “She described the situation as a 'twin crisis,' noting that extreme heat is now a core operational challenge rather than merely a weather story.”

  chief executive of The King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 29 Sept 2026 · NHS waiting list hits 6.21 million after busiest summer in history ↗

• “Extreme heat is now an NHS pressure point, not just a weather story. The NHS is now facing a twin crisis, with summer joining winter as a major pressure on services and leaving little room for staff and the system to recover between peak periods.”

  Chief Executive of the King's Fund health thinktank · NHS waiting lists · 29 Sept 2026 · NHS reports busiest ever summer as heatwaves drive up hospital admissions ↗

• “The NHS is now facing a twin crisis with summer joining winter as a major pressure on services and leaving little room for staff and the system to recover between peak periods.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 29 Sept 2026 · NHS waiting list reaches 6.21 million patients after ‘busiest summer in history’ ↗

• “We must also see action now to prepare for treatments of the future. Otherwise, we risk a situation where drugs are approved, but there isn't the workforce or tools in place for people to access treatments.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Dementia · 29 Sept 2026 · UK needs 'clearer path for dementia diagnosis and treatment' ↗

• “The NHS was now facing a twin crisis with summer joining winter as a major pressure on services and leaving little room for staff and the system to recover between peak periods”

  chief executive of The King's Fund · NHS waiting lists · 14 Sept 2026 · NHS Logs Busiest Summer Yet as A&E Waits Persist ↗

• “It is not just the financial pressures that should be ringing alarm bells across the sector... if Andy Burnham becomes prime minister, 'tackling the problems endemic in adult social care, and tackling them quickly, must be near the top of' his packed in-tray.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Adult social care & reform · 8 Sept 2026 · Adass: ‘Social care reform must top new PM’s in-tray’ ↗

• “Health service leaders are telling us that unless we act on prevention, we may not have an NHS to fix. There is a very real risk that it will collapse under the weight of avoidable illnesses such as heart disease, diabetes and other illnesses that are intimately associated with poor diet, drinking and smoking, and also largely preventable, unless the government acts boldly on these huge threats to the public's health.”

  Chief Executive of the King's Fund · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Food industry lobbying is leading Labour to drop public health plans, experts say ↗

• “Rising flu waves and industrial action are all adding strain to a system which is already struggling to deliver timely care for patients.”

  chief executive of the King's Fund · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · NHS braces for ‘unprecedented flu wave’ as hospitalised cases in England rise ↗

• “The system as it stands will not meet the cancer treatment standards by 2029 unless there is a big step-change. The government will need to show it has the answers if it is to achieve its aim of transforming cancer treatment, boosting survival rates and improving quality of life.”

  chief executive of the King's Fund health thinktank and a former executive director of CRUK · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Three-quarters of cancer patients in England will survive by 2035, government pledges ↗

• “You can't run a health service on hostility. Patients and the public may face frustratingly long waiting times for themselves or the ones they love, but that is not – and never will be – an excuse for discrimination.”

  Chief executive at The King's Fund · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Hundreds of thousands of NHS staff in England attacked and harassed, survey shows ↗

• “For patients and their loved ones, it means fewer long waits for treatment and some relief from the anxiety extended delays cause.”

  Chief Executive of The King's Fund · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Waiting times for hospital treatment in England hit key target, figures show ↗

• “Streeting's been full of energy – a passionate health secretary in a hurry. I can't move for the policy documents, frameworks and strategies that have come out of the Department of Health and Social Care [under Streeting]. But I worry that while there's been a lot of policy, much of it good policy, has there been the same energy and focus on implementing the government's 10-year health plan? The answer is no.”

  Chief Executive of the King's Fund thinktank · Hospital discharge / bed-blocking · 27 Aug 2026 · Wes Streeting vowed to fix ‘broken’ NHS but critics say he failed to deliver ↗

Recent social activity

• Reflecting on 1 year of highlights @TheKingFund - I was delighted to partner with inspirational people to find hope and solutions in a year of challenge and change for the health & care system. I look forward to more in 2025, so the best possible care can be available to all. https://t.co/b0hIL1wEWW

  x.com ↗

Where Sarah Woolnough has been quoted

1. 'People can't wait': Andy Burnham told to act on social care within weeks not yearsyorkshirepost.co.uk · 4 Oct 2026
2. Andy Burnham is right to make social care an early priority as the UK’s next PM, says Carers UKcarehomeprofessional.com · 30 Sept 2026
3. Adass: ‘Care reform cannot wait until next election’lgcplus.com · 30 Sept 2026
4. The King's Fund responds to the Prime Minister’s speech on adult social carekingsfund.org.uk · 30 Sept 2026
5. Proposed national care service ‘utterly essential’ to securing NHS future, says Burnhampulsetoday.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
6. Three in four UK GPs ‘too busy to talk to their patients in depth’theguardian.com · 30 Sept 2026
7. NHS waiting list reaches 6.21 million patients after ‘busiest summer in history’nz.news.yahoo.com · 30 Sept 2026
8. Royal Free London hits A&E targetbarnetpost.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
9. 'We're right on track,' says Streeting as key target for hospital waiting times hitbbc.com · 30 Sept 2026
10. Latest on North East waiting lists after Wes Streeting claims he hit his NHS targetschroniclelive.co.uk · 30 Sept 2026
11. Experts urge dementia be given ‘same ambition’ as cancer carecareappointments.com · 29 Sept 2026
12. NHS waiting list rises for third time in four monthshealthcare-management.uk · 29 Sept 2026
13. NHS waiting list hits 6.21 million after busiest summer in historystreamlinefeed.co.ke · 29 Sept 2026
14. NHS reports busiest ever summer as heatwaves drive up hospital admissionstheguardian.com · 29 Sept 2026
15. NHS waiting list reaches 6.21 million patients after ‘busiest summer in history’independent.co.uk · 29 Sept 2026
16. UK needs 'clearer path for dementia diagnosis and treatment'pharmaphorum.com · 29 Sept 2026
17. NHS Logs Busiest Summer Yet as A&E Waits Persistmedscape.com · 14 Sept 2026
18. Adass: ‘Social care reform must top new PM’s in-tray’lgcplus.com · 8 Sept 2026
19. Food industry lobbying is leading Labour to drop public health plans, experts saytheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
20. NHS braces for ‘unprecedented flu wave’ as hospitalised cases in England risetheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
21. Three-quarters of cancer patients in England will survive by 2035, government pledgestheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
22. Hundreds of thousands of NHS staff in England attacked and harassed, survey showstheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
23. Waiting times for hospital treatment in England hit key target, figures showtheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026
24. Wes Streeting vowed to fix ‘broken’ NHS but critics say he failed to delivertheguardian.com · 27 Aug 2026

Related media coverage

Recent UK press coverage of their topics — not necessarily citing them directly.

• Death tax, dementia tax, no tax at all: Why England hasn’t fixed social careTheLead.uk
• Maryland Reform Act Keeps 26 Offenses in Adult Court, Advocates ConcernedDavis Vanguard
• Falls can have a significant impact on an older person’s confidence and independenceWigan Today

Contact & links

• Staff pagehttps://www.kingsfund.org.uk/about-us/our-people/sarah-woolnough
• Xhttps://x.com/swoolnoughpublished here ↗
• LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/sarah-woolnough-866b9b13/
• Press office emailmedia@kingsfund.org.ukpublished here ↗
• Press office phone020 7307 2585published here ↗

Organisational contact points only, each taken from a page the organisation publishes itself. No personal or direct contact details are held or shown.