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FIVE-STAR APPOINTMENTS
WOODEN Spoon has bolstered its squad with the appointment of five new trustees.
The strategic signings bring additional expertise across a breadth of specialisms – and two familiar faces – to the children’s charity of rugby’s board, which continues to be led by Quentin Smith.
Boasting experience in both the private and public sectors, Jane Harwood, Graham Allen, Christine Braithwaite, Brett Bader and Callum Whitton succeed four trustees who have reached the end of their terms of office but remain committed to supporting a charity they have served with distinction.
Retiring from the board are Nigel Timson, who has been appointed President of Wooden Spoon; Richard Smith, who is to continue to volunteer as a project inspector and assist with fundraising and finance operations on Wooden Spoon’s Yorkshire committee; David Allen, who has pledged to back fundraising through his business networks; and Martin Sanders, who will be helping to deliver voluntary projects.
Quentin Smith, Chair of Wooden Spoon’s Board of Trustees, said: “It is a really exciting time for Wooden Spoon but also tinged with some sadness as we say a huge ‘thank you’ to four hardworking, very effective and supportive retiring trustees.
“We followed a careful process to select new trustees, which involved the whole board. We were forensic in our approach, working to understand the skills we already had at board level; which particular skills we would be losing with the trustees leaving and
what particular skills and experience we were looking to gain with the new appointments.
“We had an extraordinary response when we advertised the roles and are delighted with the appointments who bring great insight and experience from a range of disciplines such as youth problems, sports at all levels, business leadership and volunteering.
“There is a good representation across a variety of ages, gender and geographic parts of the country. They are bursting with energy and creativity, and will bring a really diverse, fresh, outlook to our work.”
Nigel Timson (pictured above), a founder of the children’s charity of rugby, said he was deeply honoured and privileged to become Wooden Spoon’s new president.
“The charity has been a fundamental and very active part of my life since 1983,” he added. “I see my role as supporting the chair and trustees to actively help and support taking Wooden Spoon onto its next stages of development and growth.”
Sarah Webb, Wooden Spoon’s CEO, said: “I look forward to working with our new board and president, drawing on their expertise and support, as we navigate the challenges and opportunities presented to us in the current environment.”
CHRISTINE BRAITHWAITE
A marketeer, rugby player and chair of women’s rugby at Firwood Waterloo Rugby Club, Christine brings a blend of marketing, customer relationship management, business improvement and sporting acumen to the Wooden Spoon board. Having learned her trade at 3M, where she developed a keen interest in the digital and data disciplines of marketing, the freelance consultant and trainer has previously spent a three-year spell supporting the Beanstalk charity.
“I was invited to a Wooden Spoon Merseyside lunch by former England rugby player and captain Gill Burns MBE last year and heard first-hand from the head teacher of a school for children with special needs,” she said. “The school had benefited from a sensory room, funded by Wooden Spoon, which was having an amazing impact on its pupils. I love the charity and really wanted to get involved, so when I saw the trustee role come up, I applied immediately.”
CALLUM WHITTON
Having worked in sport development and administration for more than a decade, Callum is at the forefront of British Olympic and Paralympic disciplines; driving and influencing the highest standards of professional, organisational and ethical conduct across a high-performance system.
Proficient in providing strategic programme, project and operational management support to UK Sport teams, stakeholders, events and athletes, he has also held various roles in schools, colleges and charities. The latter has seen the women’s rugby coach manage large development projects with a focus on community development, capacity building and engaging underrepresented groups using sport as a tool to transform and address inequalities. “My rugby and professional background had enabled me to see first-hand the work of Wooden Spoon,” he said. “I am hoping to bring new ideas, innovation and creativity to the role. I would like to use my experience to appeal to more groups and build on the excellent success that the Wooden Spoon team has already achieved.”
BRETT BADER
The current chair of Wooden Spoon Dorset and Wiltshire, Brett has a background in education, working in schools in senior management roles, as well as being a medical educator and serving as a senior officer in the Army Reserves.
He has founded and manages three businesses in the fields of educational training, expedition training and sports coaching, took part in Wooden Spoon’s Longest Game of Rugby and joined the charity’s veterans team on its Armistice tour last year.
“I hope I bring passion, new ideas and energy to the Wooden Spoon board,” he said. “I am looking forward to working with like-minded people and I want to really add value so we can continue to help others. I think outside the box and hope I can bring some innovation to the board. I am also keen to use my skills of bringing people together to support Wooden Spoon in delivering sustainable projects that help vulnerable children.”
JANE HARWOOD
A trained scientist with a 30year career working as a senior executive leading on strategic business planning and corporate support functions for various police forces, Jane has a long-standing love of rugby. She has worked as a deputy CEO for Centrex, the body responsible for police training, and for the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council and the Metropolitan Police Authority.
A vice chair at Missing People, she is also currently part of Surrey’s resilience forum, leading the response to COVID-19 and is a nonexecutive director at the University Hospital in Southampton.
“I love rugby; my husband and son play rugby and it has filled my weekends for a number of years,” she said. “The trustee role at Wooden Spoon pulls a lot of my interests together – rugby is a sport I love and enjoy and I am helping a charity supporting children and young adults with disabilities and facing disadvantage.
“I hope to bring expertise in running organisations, good networking skills and experience of being a trustee. I also bring strong skills in policy, research and safeguarding with a real passion for wanting to help people.”
GRAHAM ALLEN
Graham has been a supporter of Wooden Spoon Scotland for a number of years and recently joined the charity’s Bristol and Bath committee. He was an integral part of Wooden Spoon’s world record-breaking Everest Rugby Challenge and Longest Game in 2019, contributing his skills as an highly-experienced referee. During a diverse career, which started in medicine, Graham has set up and run a variety of businesses, ranging from coffee houses and wine bars to travel agents. He is the founder and chair of defence company Subsea Craft and owner of a commercial forestry business, LAM Forestry Ltd.
“I am hoping to bring my skills from running and setting up successful businesses together with a sports perspective to give strategic guidance to the charity,” he said. “I hope that I will be able to look at a potential project that we are considering funding and to look at the best way we can approach it, as well as working together with other charities to have the most positive impact on children with disabilities and facing disadvantage.”
