Our Patron
His Majesty King Charles III
Photo: Hugo Burnand/Royal Household 2024/Cabinet Office
Our Patron and Trustees
Our Patron and Trustees
Introduction
Our Board of Trustees is responsible for setting our strategic direction and overseeing the delivery of it. They oversee all aspects of the charity's management and finances. The Board is composed of leading figures from many sectors and includes a number of Fellows.
Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was our Patron from 1965 to 2022. In May 2024, marking the anniversary of his coronation, His Majesty King Charles III agreed to accept the Royal Patronage.
Our Patron
Trustees
Chair
The Hon Jeremy Soames
Jeremy Soames is the grandson of Sir Winston Churchill and has spent most of his career in investment management and banking, mainly with the N M Rothschild Group, where he was a director of operating companies in Europe, Asia and the USA. He is an experienced Chair and Non-executive Director with former roles including Chairman of the National Pension Fund for Nurses, Trustee of the Royal Opera House Trust and the Burdett Trust.
Vice-Chair
James Williams CVO DL
James Williams CVO DL has worked in international asset management since the early 1970s. His interests include the arts, education and rural matters in his home county of Cornwall.
Trustee
Simon Bevan
Simon Bevan is a non-executive director and adviser for a portfolio of commercial and not-for-profit organisations. He has held client-facing, leadership and governance roles as a partner in two large audit and advisory firms.
Trustee
Bharatti Crack
Bharatti Crack is a diversity and inclusion expert specialising in socio-economic diversity. She is also an Ambassador for Leaders As Change Agents. She has 30 years’ experience of leading HR departments in corporate and investment banking and telecommunications.
Trustee
Maria Iredale CF
Maria Iredale is a Churchill Fellow and Executive Director of the Petroleum Exploration Society of Great Britain, a membership association for individuals in the sub-surface energy industries.
Trustee
Molly Mulready
Molly Mulready is a judge specialising in immigration and asylum law. She is a mentor with the London School of Economics Black and Minority Ethnic mentoring scheme, and has written for various publications.
Trustee
Lucy Parker CF
Lucy Parker is a Churchill Fellow and Chair of the Advisory Council for the Churchill Fellowship. She is a senior advisor at the Brunswick Group and co-lead of the firm’s global Business & Society practice.
Trustee
Catherine Smith
Catherine Smith is a senior communications and marketing professional who has held a number of roles in the sports industry, including for multiple Premier League football clubs. Catherine was formerly a trustee for the Foyer Federation, a not-for-profit organisation helping young people.
Trustee
David Taylor-Smith MBE
David Taylor-Smith is an international business leader who has held senior roles at PHS Group, VPS Group, G4S plc, Aggreko Plc and Jardine Matheson. David has also served in the British Army and United Nations and has held many charitable roles.
Trustee
Joanne Thompson
Joanne Thompson is a Crown Representative to HMG, as well as holding non-executive directorships. Prior to this, she held a range of leadership roles in the software and telecoms industries.
Trustee
Susan Wood
Susan has 42 years’ investment experience, 19 years as an investment manager and 23 years as an investment consultant. In 2001 she established Portfolio Review Services to provide independent investment consultancy to charities and family trusts.
Susan is also a trustee of two charities: Tower Hill Trust and College of Arms Trust. She is also a liveryman of both the Fishmongers and the Feltmakers, and served as the first lady Master of the Feltmakers in 2009/2010.
“I am very proud to see the enormous contribution made by the Churchill Fellowship in all areas of our national life.” – Jeremy Soames, Chairman.