The chief executive of Barking Havering and Redbridge Hospital Trust has announced he will be stepping down.

Matthew Hopkins has been the chief executive of the trust since April 2014 and has been praised for his dedication and hard work.

Before that, Mr Hopkins was chief executive of Epsom and St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust for three years and has previously also worked at a number of other London teaching hospitals including Guy’s and St Thomas’, Imperial, and Barts and The London.

Mr Hopkins began his health career as a nurse, having trained at Addenbrooke’s Hospital in Cambridge before spending five years as a Macmillan nurse.

Wes Streeting, MP for Ilford North, said: “I’m very sorry that we are losing Matthew Hopkins from our local trust.

“Under his leadership, we’ve seen significant improvements in the performance and culture of the trust and he has worked hard to rebuild trust and confidence in NHS services provided at Queen’s and King George hospitals.

“He leaves with the enormous gratitude of a great many of us who’ve really valued his tireless work and commitment and I wish him well for the future.”

Andrew Corbett-Nolan, chief executive of Good Governance, a company that supports governance practice across the public sector, said: “I can offer an educated opinion on the achievement of Matthew Hopkins and his team – an NHS trust that had persistently failed over a decade – no belief that success was possible.

“Failure was normalised. Matthew and team unlocked a fabulous staff group to believe in themselves.”

BHRUT released a statement announcing Mr Hopkins decision.

The trust said: “Under Matthew’s leadership our organisation has moved out of quality special measures and our most recent Care Quality Commission targeted inspection rated three out of four services as Good.”

Matthew Hopkins said: “It has been a real privilege serving the residents of Barking and Dagenham, Havering and Redbridge and improving the care they’ve received at Queen’s and King George hospitals.

“I’ve worked alongside some of the best clinicians, nurses, support staff and patients to improve quality, performance and the way we work. I now regard many of them as my friends.

“I am truly proud that we’ve faced head on – through perseverance and sheer tenacity – some difficult issues and we’ve made huge progress as we strive to ensure that local people get the safe, high quality care they deserve.

“I am also pleased that our 6,500-strong workforce now feel proud and confident and are constantly striving to improve care for the benefit of our patients.”

Mr Hopkins returned to work last year following a kidney transplant.

He said, after his return further serious issues in the trust emerged and he has decided to hand the reigns on to Joe Fielder, currently chairman of the trust.

Mr Hopkins added: “It is now time for someone else to take the helm and move us out of financial special measures and for me to seek new opportunities.

“I would like to thank all our partners, politicians and the media for getting behind their local hospitals and for supporting me personally as we have implemented changes.

“I urge them all to continue to work together to support our trust on the next stage of its journey.”

Joe Fielder said: “I would like to pay tribute to Matthew who has dedicated his career to public service.

“The improvements in quality we are proud of are due in no small measure to Matthew’s stewardship.

“He is a visible, approachable leader who has fostered a culture where people are actively encouraged to speak up. These guiding principles will continue to be an immoveable focus for us as we devote our energies in the coming months to securing a more robust financial position for our trust.”