HESTA Super Fund., the health and community services industry fund, has added three new directors to its board and achieved a board gender balance in the process.

New appointee Maree O'Halloran, who is the director of the Welfare Rights Centre in NSW and practices as a solicitor at the centre, was previously a director of the NSW State Super SAS Trustee Corporation from 2002 to 2009.

The second appointee is Australian Council of Trade Unions assistant secretary Tim Lyons. He was previously a trustee director on LUCRF Super's board and is a current director of the Union Education Foundation.

Australian Healthcare and Hospitals Association executive director Prue Power has also been appointed to the HESTA board.

Prior to taking up this position, Power was Australian Medical Association general heath and e-health director. She has served on several boards, including five years on the ACT Health Community Service Board.

"With the new appointees we now have very broad representation from across health and community services . I am pleased that we have also achieved gender balance on the board," HESTA chief executive Anne-Marie Corboy said.

Angela Emslie, a board member since 1994, has been appointed as the new chair. Australian Nursing Federation federal secretary Ged Kearney will take over the role of secretary.

HESTA has $15 billion in funds under management and 84 per cent of its members are women.