Welsh homelessness charity boss moves to WCVA
After six years leading homelessness charity the Wallich, Lindsay Cordery-Bruce has been appointed as chief executive of Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA).
She will leave the Wallich in the first week of April before starting at WCVA in May.
Cordery-Bruce said: “The voluntary sector faces so many challenges and opportunities ahead, which we'll meet head on with innovation and passion.
“I have unwavering belief that the answers to the problems we face in Wales are already within our communities and can be harnessed through coproduction and community involvement.
“This will be a big change for me and I have a lot to learn, but I feel confident we can continue to take WCVA from strength to strength with collaboration and partnership.”
New CEO for Police Care UK
Renata Gomes has been appointed as chief executive of Police Care UK, a charity that supports police harmed during service.
Gomes will take up the post on 11 March and joins from Blind Veterans UK Group, where she was chief scientific officer. Previously, she was a volunteer Metropolitan police cadet and trained as a forensic and medical specialist.
Derek Ray-Hill, chair of Police Care UK, said: “We are delighted Renata is joining us as our new CEO.
“She will take Police Care UK forward to expand our capabilities and ensure we are at the forefront of combating stress and trauma in policing.”
Debt charity appoints chair
Lesley Titcomb has been appointed as StepChange’s chair, taking over from John Griffith-Jones, who leaves the charity after more than five years in post.
Titcomb has been on the charity’s board since 2019, acting as a board champion for consumer duty and serving on the audit, risk and compliance committee.
She was CEO of the Pensions Regulator from 2015 to 2019 and is currently a governor for the University of Hertfordshire.
StepChange chief executive Vikki Brownridge said: “We know StepChange will benefit hugely from her wealth of experience, both on the board and in her previous roles.
“The rest of the executive and I look forward to working with her in what is a hugely important time for the charity and the people we help.”
New chair for Jewish Care
Jewish Care has announced that Jonathan Zenios will be stepping down as chairman in September after four years in the role.
While in post, Zenios oversaw Jewish Care merge with two organisations: Sunridge Court and Jami.
He will be succeeded by Marcus Sperber, who has been a trustee of Jewish Care since 2021. He currently sits on the charity’s internal audit, assurance and risk committee and remuneration committee.
Sperber has 30 years’ experience in the real estate and investment management industry.
On his appointment, he said: “It is a privilege to be part of Jewish Care’s critical work and to be able to give back to the Jewish and wider community.”
Fauna & Flora recruits chair
Conservation charity Fauna & Flora has appointed Stephen Fitzgerald as its new chair of council of trustees. He takes over from Liz Rogers, who has served as the charity’s interim chair since September 2022.
Fitzgerald was recently as founder and managing partner of Affirmative Investment Management, which was acquired by MetLife Investment Management in December 2022.
He is an advisor to MetLife on sustainable investing and serves on the boards of Great Barrier Reef Foundation, the investment committee of the British Museum and more.
Seafarers’ charity hires secretary general
The Mission to Seafarers has appointed Peter Rouch as its secretary general of the maritime welfare charity. He will replace Andrew Wright, who will retire in September.
Rouch will join the charity on 1 July, joining from Church Army UK & Ireland where he will have been CEO for three years.
Tom Boardley, chairman of the Mission to Seafarers, said: “Our current secretary general, Andrew Wright, has done so much to develop and transform the Mission during his tenure and we owe him a debt of gratitude for his leadership for more than a decade.
“We are confident that Peter will maintain this momentum and build on our vital role as a leading provider of maritime welfare support for seafarers around the globe.”
Macmillan appoints first CFO
Macmillan Cancer Support has appointed Karen Watson as its first chief finance and operations officer. The new role combines the responsibilities of finances and operations into one role.
The role will entail overseeing the financial management and sustainability of Macmillan, and work on developing and governing the charity’s operational strategy.
Watson’s previous role was as chief finance officer and chief operations officer at the English National Opera. She has also held positions at Sky, SABMiller, IBM and PwC.
Gemma Peters, CEO of Macmillan, said: “Macmillan is embarking on a period of transformation as we adapt to meet the changing needs of people living with cancer. I’m delighted to welcome Karen and the broad range of skills and experience that she brings to the leadership team.
“Karen will play a leading role in future-proofing the organisation, to ensure that we’re playing to Macmillan’s strengths and providing people with cancer with the vital support they need, in the most impactful and sustainable way.”
ShelterBox recruits director
Disaster relief charity ShelterBox has appointed Lisa McCormack as its new director of fundraising and communications. She succeeds Harriett Roberts and Robyn Cummins, who job shared the role for almost five years.
McCormack has 20 years’ experience in the UK charity sector. She started her career in fundraising at Age UK and was previously director of communications and fundraising at Creative Youth Network. For the last five years she has worked as head of fundraising at the Donkey Sanctuary.
She lives in Devon and is a trustee of North Devon Hospice.
On her appointment, McCormack said: “As we begin our crucial response in Gaza, I am honoured to join the remarkable supporters and team at ShelterBox; an organisation renowned for its commitment to people made homeless by disaster and conflict. Together, we will work tirelessly to provide critical shelter when people need it most.”
GOSH Charity hires director
Aoife Regan has been appointed as GOSH Charity’s new director of impact and charitable programmes. She succeeds Kiki Syrad, who has moved to become director of research and innovation at Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Regan joins from Cancer Research UK, where she worked for 20 years in several positions. Most recently, she was director of information and involvement for a year.
She will oversee the delivery of the charity’s new research strategy which will see an investment of £70m into rare and complex child health conditions.
Alzheimer’s Society appoints external relations lead
Laura Peters has been appointed as Alzheimer’s Society’s associate director of external relations and media.
She joins from WWF-UK, where she was director of corporate communications for more than two years. Before that, she worked at Cancer Research UK for 16 years in various senior roles.
Director of research and influencing at Alzheimer’s Society, Fiona Carragher, said:⯓Her impressive professional experience working on some of the biggest campaigns across the charity sector, as well as her own personal connection to dementia, demonstrated an understanding, empathy, and determination to help us tackle our ambition for a future where dementia no longer devastates lives.”â¯
Van-Tam steps down from Parkrun board
Jonathan Van-Tam, the former deputy chief medical officer during the pandemic, has stepped down from the board of Parkrun after a year in the role.
He was announced as a director of Parkrun Global last January and took up post in March.
Van-Tam said he was stepping down for “personal reasons” which include not having as much time to dedicate to the role.
He said: “It has been an honour to serve as a trustee on parkrun’s global board for the past year. However, for personal reasons I now, unfortunately, find myself unable to dedicate as much time and energy as I would have liked to board and trustee responsibilities at parkrun.
“I wish parkrun every success in continuing its important work in improving the health and happiness of even more people around the world, through these impactful weekly community events.”
New trustees for Horniman Museum
The Horniman Museum and Gardens has appointed three new trustees to its board.
- Diana Maine is a professional educator who is a volunteer at the museum.
- Yesomi Umolu is the director of curatorial affairs and public practice at Serpentine.
- Nick Wyver is a consultancy director for SB+CO, a specialist sustainability consultancy.
- Brian O’Sullivan is a local resident who has been appointed for 12 months through the boardroom apprentice programme. He has been visiting the museum with his family regularly for 10 years.
Michael Salter-Church, chair of the Horniman, said: “The range of experience they bring will be incredibly beneficial since they join us at a very exciting moment, as we embark on the delivery phase of the Nature + Love project, which will transform the Horniman over the next few years.”
