Larry Gardiner now lives and works in the Netherlands in a city near the German Border called Almelo. Previously he has lived and worked in Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Romania and the United States. His work has included leading humanitarian and emergency situation assignments and regional programmes with international NGOs and as a client principal with multinational IT consulting and professional services businesses. Responsibilities have included governance and leadership as a chief executive, as a company secretary, and as a senior manager with staff and large budgets. He has worked with CODA International, British Telecom, Digital Equipent, Compaq Computer and Hewlett Packard as well as building his own business Quality IT Solutions Ltd.

His participation, as a lay person, in the NHS England ‘Leading Together’ programme was hosted by Thames Valley AHSN. He went on to lead a Quality Improvement Project with Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust.  These experiences have been complimentary to a patient expert role in promoting Clinical Audit with the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP) service user network. Currently he is also member of a coproduced evaluation of Integrated Personal Commissioning commissioned by NHS England and being carried out by Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE).

He has recently completed his  appointment  to a three year unremunerated Lay Observer contract with Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust where led a variety of Patient Participation and Involvement activities, inter-alia, improving the patient experience in the areas of geratology and stroke wards.

Larry is a Patient Expert recovering from stroke and  recently he has had a dual diagnosis of Mild Cognitive Impairment with Asperger’s Syndrome. He is a member of the Young Onset Dementia Network and a volunteer fund raiser for Young Dementia UK based in Oxfordshire. Larry was a founder member and initiator in the National Dementia Policy Think Tank. He was a contributor to evidence submitted to the United Nations Rapporteur review of the UN Convention on Rights for People with Disabilities (UNCRPD). He has also presented oral testimony in Select Committee proceedings at the House of Commons.

Previously he has been an advocacy practitioner supporting individuals in hospitals with their social care assessments, supported discharge and end of life choices with written advance decisions. Currently he is a charity trustee with an advocacy organisation which provides statutory mental health, care act and community lay advocacy . Larry has been a participant in London School of Economics (LSE) Housing and Communities Think Tank at Trafford Hall and has been a policy contributor to think tank programmes for the last five years.