The Prime Minister has reappointed Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia as Trustee of the Tate.

News story

Dame Jayne-Anne Gadhia has been reappointed by the Prime Minister as Trustee of the Tate for a four year period from 14 November 2020 to 13 November 2024.

Jayne-Anne is the Founder and Executive Chair of Snoop, and an Adviser to Salesforce UKI. From 2007 to 2018 she was the CEO of Virgin Money.

A Chartered Accountant, she spent six years at Norwich Union (now Aviva) before becoming one of the founders of Virgin Direct in 1995. Three years later, she set up the Virgin One account, which was acquired by the Royal Bank of Scotland in 2001. She subsequently spent five years at RBS before returning to Virgin as CEO of Virgin Money.

In November 2016 she was appointed as the UK Government’s Women in Finance Champion, and in July 2017 she became a founder member of its Business Diversity and Inclusion Group. In 2018 she was named Leader of the Year at the Lloyds Bank National Business Awards.

She is Chair of the Prince’s Foundation and Trustee of the Tate. She sits on the UK Government’s Industrial Strategy Council, Mayor of London’s Business Advisory Board, CRUK Corporate Board, Financial Inclusion Policy Forum and Lloyds Culture Advisory Group.

She was made a Dame in the 2019 New Year’s Honours list.

This role is not remunerated. This reappointment has been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments, the process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. The Government’s Governance Code requires that any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years is declared. This is defined as holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation or candidature for election. Dame Gadhia has declared a donation to a political party.

Published 18 December 2020



The Secretary of State has appointed Sir Mark Walport as the Royal Society’s Trustee for the British Museum.

News story

Sir Mark Walport has been appointed by the Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport as theRoyal Society’s Trustee for the British Museum for four years from 01 December 2020 to 30 November 2024.

Sir Mark Walport is the Chairman of the Kennedy Memorial Trust and the recently retired founding Chief Executive of UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), which is responsible for the public funding of research and innovation.

He was Government Chief Scientific Adviser (GCSA) and Head of the Government Office for Science from April 2013 to September 2017.

His previous career highlights include:

Director of the Wellcome Trust

Professor of Medicine and Head of the Division of Medicine at Imperial College London

Founder Fellow and first Registrar of the Academy of Medical Sciences

member of the advisory board of Infrastructure UK

member of the India-UK CEO Forum and UK-India Round Table

non-executive member of the Office for Strategic Coordination of Health Research

Mark received a knighthood in the 2009 New Year Honours List for services to medical research and was elected a Fellow of The Royal Society in 2011 and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 2017.

This role is not remunerated. This appointment process was not regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments and therefore is not subject to the Government’s Governance Code for Public Appointments. However, in line with the Governance Code, Sir Walport was asked to declare any significant political activity undertaken in the last five years. This is defined as holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation or candidature for election. Sir Walport has not declared any activity.

Published 18 December 2020



A long-buried Kent stream is brought back into the daylight

One hundred metres of the Bourne Stream south of Borough Green is set to flow freely once more after being released from its underground pipe, thanks to the Environment Agency and construction firm A B Canham and Son.

The newly open stretch of the watercourse, also known as the Basted Stream, will now be able to support more plant and animal life as well as reducing the risk of flooding to the nearby area. A footpath has also been created to run alongside it, giving greater access to the natural environment, so that people will be able to enjoy the stream while walking to or from Basted.

The work to release the stream, termed ‘daylighting’, was carried out as part of the Milbourne Place housing development.

Freeing up this stretch of a previously covered-up stream demonstrates how the Environment Agency is helping the drive to build back better and greener. The project also is a step towards reaching targets in the EA2025: creating a better place plan including improving more than 4,000 kilometres of river and creating nearly 1,200 hectares of habitat.

Environment Agency spokesperson Richard Charman, Geomorphology Technical Specialist, said:

In achieving this, there was a concerted effort across several of our teams to make AB Canham and Son aware of what might be possible in opening up the stream. Working together we were able to help improve the environment by uncovering over half of this buried stretch of watercourse.

Opening the stream will help improve the area for wildlife as plants will now grow and provide food and shelter for fish and other animals.

Although it’s dry at the moment, the stream will start to flow as groundwater levels rise following rainfall over the winter months. It will then start to fill with flora and fauna and help make the Bourne catchment healthier and more resilient.

Background information

The initial reason for replacing the culvert with a larger one and opening up part of the channel was to reduce flood risk so that the site could be developed for housing.

The flood risk modelling in support of the planning application demonstrated a reduction in flood risk to the site itself and the immediate vicinity around the medical centre and access roads.

Groundwater levels recharge over winter

As more rain falls during the winter, groundwater levels start to rise. Generally, rivers with ‘bourne’ in the name will start to flow in the spring. For example, Winterbourne, Lambourne, Nailbourne. In some years exceptional rainfall can lead to groundwater flooding.

Groundwater levels are recharging now and there is a delay of months as the rain filters down into the aquifers.

The Environment Agency monitors groundwater levels and publishes regular reports online. More information can be found on GOV.UK.

Flooding from groundwater can happen when the level of water within the rock or soil that makes up the land surface (known as the water table) rises.

Lead local flood authorities (the unitary or county council) are responsible for managing the risk of flooding from groundwater.

The Environment Agency has a strategic overview for all sources of flooding including groundwater. They supply information in the form of monitored groundwater levels. In some areas that have historically experienced groundwater flooding, the Environment Agency provide a groundwater alert or warning service.



CSPL Submission to the ICGS 18 Month Review

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Regulator concludes regulatory case into governance at the RSPCA

The regulator’s involvement with the charity began in 2014, after serious concerns were identified about the charity’s governance and leadership. Among the Commission’s key concerns were frequent changes in leadership and a sustained reliance on trustees acting as interim Chief Executives. This unusual practice, which began as an interim arrangement, went on for too long, risking public confidence in an important national institution.

In August 2018, the Commission issued the charity with an Official Warning, in relation to concerns about a settlement offer to the charity’s former acting chief executive.

Despite regular meetings with staff and trustees, including a three-day visit by the regulator to the charity’s headquarters in October 2018, the Commission remained concerned about the charity’s progress in reforming its governance. Its concerns revolved around the set-up and role of the charity’s trustee body (the council), specifically:

  • its large size – at this point the council consisted of 25 members
  • the long terms of office of council members
  • the extent to which the trustees had the necessary knowledge, skills and experience given the size and complexity of the charity
  • excessive involvement of council members in day to day issues usually the responsibility of the executive and staff

Trustees were required to take immediate steps to rectify the situation and bring the charity’s governance, notably the operations of its council, in line with expectations for a charity of this size and complexity. Thereafter, the charity announced changes to “truly transform the Society”, including an overhaul of the charity’s governance.

Following a wide consultation on these proposals, led by a new Chair and Chief Executive, constitutional changes, which addressed but went beyond the Commission’s concerns, were adopted at the Society’s AGM in June 2019. This included reducing the size of the trustee body from 25 to 12.

The Commission subsequently monitored the implementation of these changes and is now satisfied that the charity has acted on its regulatory advice and used this as an opportunity to make significant changes to its leadership and governance.

The regulatory case concluded earlier this year, and the RSPCA’s relationship with the Commission has now moved to a regular footing. This means the charity’s structures are considered improved and able to deal with new issues should they arise. The charity made further refinements to its governance at its AGM yesterday.

Helen Earner, Director of Regulatory Services at the Charity Commission, said:

The RSPCA is a much-loved national institution, which performs a crucial role in animal protection. We have had to have extensive engagement with the charity over a number of years to ensure things were placed on a better footing, but are satisfied that the RSPCA’s current governance reflects our expectations of large and complex charities.

Charities that put their purpose at the core of all they do, and underpin this with robust governance and the highest standards of conduct, will serve their beneficiaries better, and help meet their full charitable potential.

Ends

Notes to Editors

  1. The Charity Commission is the independent, non-ministerial government department that registers and regulates charities in England and Wales. Its purpose is to ensure charity can thrive and inspire trust so that people can improve lives and strengthen society.