Matthew Ellis - Hospital Manager

Matt has worked in inpatient mental health care since 1998 including 25 years in the NHS. Before joining Cygnet Health Care as hospital manager he was modern matron and then patient safety lead for an NHS Trust.

In his spare time Matt enjoys keeping fit in the gym and running. He also loves watching a good film and spending time with his young daughter.

Louise Snape - Clinical Manager

Louise is a compassionate and highly experienced nurse who qualified at the University of Sheffield in 2006 and later completed her BSc in Medical Studies. Her career has taken her through a wide range of settings — from community and supported living to rehabilitation, low secure services, acute mental health, and prison healthcare — giving her a deep understanding of the people and systems she serves.

Since 2010, Louise has held senior management roles, including Director of Clinical Services for Mental Health Forensic Services. She is known for her calm leadership, her ability to bring clarity to complex situations, and her commitment to creating environments where both staff and patients feel supported.

Her passion for improving care led her to contribute to the RCN Congress, championing recognition for MH and LD nursing in the prison service, and to help develop a neurodiversity pathway that promotes more inclusive and person centred support. Louise joined Cygnet Wyke in 2025 as the clinical manager.

Dr Snur Hamad - Medical Director

Dr Hamad is a member of the Royal College of Psychiatrist and have been working in the UK as a doctor since 2004. He trained as a general adult psychiatrist with a special interest in neurodevelopmental disorders in Yorkshire Deanery’s Higher Specialist Training Programme between 2014 to 2017. Since 2005 he has worked for different NHS Foundation Trusts in Yorkshire, as a Psychiatrist. He worked for Cygnet Oaks in Barnsley between 2018 to 2020, and joined Cygnet Wyke Hospital in September 2020.

Sarah Stephenson – Lead Social Worker

Sarah qualified as a Registered Learning Disability Nurse and a Social Worker in 2018. She started working as a newly qualified nurse within Cygnet in 2018 and transferred over to Social work in 2020. Prior to this she her experience was in working with people with mental health issues in the community. As a nurse, Sarah also had experience in working in substance misuse and complex care services.

Before qualifying as a nurse Sarah became a support worker supporting with people with learning disabilities and autism in 2010. She enjoyed supporting individuals to engage in activities that were meaningful to them and accessing the community. After 4 years in this role, she wanted to do more for people and wanted to make a difference, and so decided to go to the University of Salford to complete a degree in Integrated Practice in Learning Disabilities Nursing and Social Work.

Ashley Hamlin – Bennu Ward Manager

Ashley started off working in healthcare in 2009 and began her career at Alpha Hospital Bury in 2013 as a support worker on the CAMHS PICU ward. Alpha Hospitals were eventually sold to Cygnet in 2016 where she remained until qualified. Ashley worked in various different roles including supporting the Occupation Therapy department before attending the University of Central Lancashire to qualify as a Mental Health Nurse.

Ashley remained within Cygnet Bury predominantly working on the CAMHS PICU however gaining further experience in low secure and general adolescent wards. She progressed to Clinical Team Leader and eventually became Night Service Coordinator managing the service out of hours including the adult and deaf services across the site which included 15 wards.

Ashley left Cygnet Bury to gain managerial experience in a Tier 3 CAMHS inpatient setting before returning back to Cygnet as a Ward Manager at Cygnet Hospital Wyke bringing with her experience across many services. Ashley is passionate about her role and enjoys supporting people in their time of need.

Ian Rutter – Phoenix Ward Manager

Ian is a Registered Mental Health Nurse with 41 years’ experience and is a highly experienced Ward Manager who has been a Ward Manager for Cygnet for 8 years and has nursed for Cygnet for over 18 years.

Ian is committed to driving high quality care and the service user experience and this is shown by his track record of improving services where he worked before. He is committed to working with home area services and families to ensure a smooth transition for service users from hospital to the community.

Ian is also a qualified teacher and is keen to develop and improve the skills and knowledge of the staff.

Altina Zimbahwe - Head of Care, Kingfisher Ward

Altina qualified as a registered mental health nurse in 2003 from the University of Leeds. Altina started her career with Cygnet in 2003 working in their low secure services, she has also worked within the PICU and Acute services before moving to the Rehabilitation service. Altina became Head of care at Cygnet Lodge Brighouse in July 2021 before joining the team at Cygnet Hospital Wyke in July 2026. She is a Trauma Risk Management Practitioner and Reducing Restrictive Practice lead.

Shaun Stevenson - Therapy Manager & Substance Misuse Practitioner

Shaun joined Cygnet Health Care in 2012. Prior to this he worked for 19 years with the Ministry of Justice, holding a number of roles focusing on rehabilitative work. He has facilitated and managed a wide range of offending behaviour programmes using a CBT approach.

For the past 9 years Shaun’s specialist area of work has been the development and management of substance misuse programmes in custodial and community settings. He is an experienced trainer of substance misuse workers for CBT group work.