The chairman of a health trust grappling with multiple pressures is stepping down after more than two years at the helm.

Niall Dickson CBE is leaving the East Kent Hospitals Trust at the end of this month “for personal and health reasons”.

Mr Dickson, who has held the role since April 2021, said: “This is an organisation filled with dedicated and committed staff who give so much day in day out and I am confident that with the right support the Trust will continue its improvement journey.”

The trust, which runs hospitals in Ashford, Margate, Canterbury, Dover and Folkestone, has been under increasing pressure in recent years, not least after finding itself at the centre of a baby deaths scandal.

The conclusion of Dr Bill Kirkup’s probe into maternity failings across East Kent hospitals found 45 baby deaths could have been prevented out of 200 investigated dating back to 2009.

Mr Dickson continued: “The challenges laid out by Dr Kirkup’s report last year are significant and, as we have always said, apply not just to maternity but to the organisation as a whole.

“There are also great demands on our services.”

The trust is also facing huge financial struggles, with a new interim chief financial officer recently being parachuted in to help pull it out of its £70 million deficit.

The Care Quality Commission has also piled the pressure on East Kent Hospitals after multiple concerns were raised following unannounced inspections of the William Harvey Hospital in Ashford and QEQM in Margate.

Despite the issues raised, Mr Dickson feels improvements have already been made.

He said: “I am pleased that we have made progress on key areas during my tenure, including significant improvements in staffing, in our maternity care, in listening to and involving patients and by taking steps to create a more open culture.

“This improvement work will take at least another three or four years and will require every effort from the whole Board, the Governors and every member of staff at the Trust, as well as focussed support from the NHS centrally, including the capital funding it needs to provide safe, effective and sustainable services to the people of East Kent.

“It will also require dedicated teamwork from all health and care staff and their organisations across East Kent.

“I have been privileged to chair our Health and Care Partnership and I must pay tribute to everyone involved in that endeavour, which is starting to make a real difference.”

Vice-chair Stewart Baird is stepping into the chair role until a permanent successor is appointed.