Elections 2021
AOP Councillors 2021
The outcome of the elections and appointments to Council has been announced. This is the full list of Council members from 9 June 2021 and includes Councillors who continue their term of office.
| Councillor | Representing |
| Emma Spofforth | East of England |
| Tushar Majithia | East Midlands |
| Jagdeep Kaur Gill | London |
| Angela Henderson | North East England |
| Dharmesh Patel |
North West England |
| Rachel Hiscox |
South East England |
| Ed Bickerstaffe |
South West England |
| Francesca Marchetti |
West Midlands |
| Stewart Mitchell Nizz Sabir |
Yorkshire and the Humber |
| Julie-Anne Little Brian McKeown |
Northern Ireland |
| Stephanie Kearney Eilidh Martin Kevin Wallace |
Scotland |
| James Brawn Kamaljit Kalsi |
Wales |
| Inderpal Ghuman |
Undergraduate Student optometrists |
| Luke Mc-Roy Jones |
Pre-registration optometrists |
| Sana Asif Ali Yasen |
Newly-qualified & early career optometrists |
| Vijay Anand |
Hospital optometrists – chair of Hospital Optometrists Committee |
| Jasmine Kaur Matharu |
Hospital optometrists |
| Fatima Nawaz |
Independent prescribing optometrists |
| Paul Chapman-Hatchett |
Domiciliary care optometrists |
| Kris Cottier |
Locum optometrists |
| Mehul Patel |
Directors of multiple practices |
| Kevin Thompson |
Directors of independent practices |
| Karan Vyas |
Employees of multiple practices |
| Josephine Evans |
Employees of independent practices |
| Jonathan Bennett |
Franchisee/Joint Venture optometrists |
| James Dawson |
Dispensing opticians |
| Will Holmes |
University lecturers |
| Phillip Buckhurst |
University lecturers – nominated by the Optometric Schools Council |
The Elections Process
The AOP Council elections took place between 12 March and 26 March 2021.
AOP practising optometrist members were invited to vote in the seven constituencies which had more candidates than vacancies: Scotland, North West England, East Midlands, West Midlands, London, South East England, and Yorkshire and the Humber. Two candidates tied for first place in Yorkshire and the Humber and have therefore both joined Council. Candidates in three seats open for nominations were elected unopposed. The AOP Board has appointed other Councillors to represent various segments of the AOP’s membership.
The work of an AOP Councillor
AOP Councillors represent our members and help to ensure that all members’ views across the UK and the profession are represented in policy-making. A significant element of a Councillor’s role is to communicate with members through various channels and to collate and present their opinions, interests, and concerns at the three annual Council meetings.
Our Councillors also promote and actively encourage membership of the AOP, attend regional CET events, deal with requests from members, and refer members to the right person within the AOP to provide answers, advice, and support.
Councillors have told us that being part of the AOP Council is a rewarding experience, with opportunities to develop new skills, network and help bring about positive changes to the future of the profession.
Read the full Councillor job description.
More information about the AOP Council
Meet and contact your AOP Councillors.
Should you have any questions or require any additional information, please email [email protected]