The Pilgrim Trust is pleased to announce the appointment of three new members to its Board of Trustees, bringing with them a broad mix of skills, experience and expertise.
The three new appointments are: Samira Ahmed, Toby Anstruther and Simone Spray. They will take up their roles immediately on a five-year term. The three new appointees bring the total number of Pilgrim Trustee Board members to 12.
Chair of Trustees, James Sassoon, said:
‘I am delighted to welcome our three new Board members; the excellent mixture of skills they bring are crucial for all our funding decisions across the breadth of the Pilgrim Trust’s work. I look forward to working with them.’
Biographies
Samira Ahmed
Samira Ahmed is an award-winning journalist, broadcaster and writer, specialising in culture and design. She presents Front Row on Radio 4, Newswatch on BBC1, the vintage TV podcast Through the Square Window, and is the author of a BFI Film Classics book on the Beatles’ first film, A Hard Day’s Night. She is President of the Twentieth Century Society, which campaigns to protect and celebrate modern architecture and design heritage, and sits on the Historic England blue plaques advisory panel. Samira is also a trustee of the Centre for Women’s Justice and an honorary fellow of St Edmund Hall, Oxford.
Toby Anstruther
Toby Anstruther, who lives in Scotland, has 30 years’ experience managing central London and rural property – much of it Listed – on his own account and as a trustee for a number of private estates. Beyond this he has had wider experience as a trustee of a number of charities, including Foundation Scotland (Scotland’s Community Foundation) and other Community Foundations and charities of place. He also sits on the Council of the Duchy of Lancaster.
His interests have always been focused on Design, Community, Food & Farming.
Simone Spray
Simone Spray has been working with children, young people, families and communities for over 30 years driven by a passion for tackling structural inequity and discrimination and championing social justice and community voice and influence. She is currently the Chief Executive at 42nd Street – a pioneering mental health charity supporting 5000+ young people in Greater Manchester each year and Non-Executive Director at Greater Manchester Mental Health. A qualified Psychologist and Youth Worker, Simone cut her teeth leading innovations within Local Authorities in Greater Manchester and then went on to lead the UK Child Poverty Programme at Save the Children and as Deputy CE at Keep Britain Tidy. Simone remains a Trustee at Gorse Hill Studios where she started her own youth and community work journey in the 90’s.
Ends
You can view the profile of all Pilgrim Trust Board members here
The Pilgrim Trust is a UK wide independent grant-making charitable trust. We give around £3 million in grants each year to charities and other public bodies that share our commitment to delivering positive and lasting change.