Lucy Wood reports… WATERWAYS charity the Canal & River Trust has announced the appointment of Campbell Robb as its new chief executive. Mr Robb will join the charity on October 6, after six years leading the social justice charity Nacro as its chief executive. He is replacing Richard Parry, who joined the trust in 2013, and who has led the organisation through its critical formative years to become an established national charity.
Before joining Nacro, Mr Robb was chief executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust, steering the organisation through a significant change programme. Prior to this he spent seven years as chief executive of Shelter, building its ability to support more people than ever before and leading the organisation’s response to some of the biggest changes to housing and welfare policy in generations.
Mr Robb also has government experience. Before joining Shelter, he was the first director general of the Office of the Third Sector, an adviser to HM Treasury, and was previously director of public policy at the National Council for Voluntary Organisations.
“The role of chief executive of the Canal & River Trust is one of the most exciting roles in the public and voluntary sectors and one I am delighted to take on,” he said. “To act as a steward for the history and protect the future of these amazing living monuments will be a challenge, but also an opportunity.”
Incoming director
The CRT has also announced the appointment of Ben Cottam as the director for its historic canals spanning Wales and the south-west of England. He will join the charity on August 11 from the Federation of Small Businesses, where he is currently head of Wales.
Before his current role, Mr Cottam was for eight years the head of the Association of Chartered Certified Accounts in Wales. He is a member of a number of boards and groups including Welsh Government’s Social Partnership Council and the Wales Productivity Forum and previously served for some years as chair of the Local Advisory Board of Cardiff & Vale College’s Career Ready programme, delivering career-focused employability opportunities for young people.
