# New CEO for Rural Action Derbyshire, plus more mover news

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2025/01/07/new-ceo-for-rural-action-derbyshire-plus-more-mover-news/
- Published: 2025-01-07T11:21:07+00:00
- Author: Melanie May

**Recent and upcoming movers – including new CEOs at Rural Action Derbyshire and
LCVS, and a Chair of Trustees appointment at Camden Giving. **

![](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/Emma-Simpson-RAD-CEO.png)

#### Emma Simpson appointed CEO at Rural Action Derbyshire

[Rural Action Derbyshire](https://www.ruralactionderbyshire.org.uk/) (RAD) has appointed
Emma Simpson as its new Chief Executive Officer, as of 1 January. Simpson takes 
over from Beverley Parker who has retired after 10 years.

Simpson has worked with the organisation for over a decade, playing a pivotal role
in many of RAD’s flagship initiatives, including tackling rural fuel poverty, championing
community-led solutions to rural challenges and helping to create innovative partnerships.
She first joined RAD in June 2006, leaving at the end of 2011 for a two-and-a-half-
year break, before coming back in September 2014 as Head of Communications & Administration.

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![Mark Beddy](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/Mark_Beddy_Head-Shoulders.
jpg)

Mark Beddy

![Carl Cowling](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/Carl-Cowling-Oct24.
jpg)

Carl Cowling

#### Carl Cowling & Mark Beddy join British Red Cross board of trustees

Carl Cowling and Mark Beddy formally joined [British Red Cross](https://www.redcross.org.uk/)
as trustees on 1 January, with Beddy becoming the finance and audit committee chair.
Beddy is a chartered accountant and was a senior audit partner at Deloitte until
2018, when he became a trustee of the British Council, chairing the finance committee.
He is an independent member of the finance committee of the London Symphony Orchestra
and is chair of LSO Productions. Until 2022, he was chair of trustees of English
Touring Opera. He is also a non-executive director of Schroder European REIT plc
and Portfolio REIT PLC.

Cowling is the Group CEO of WH Smith PLC, a global leader in travel retail. He also
chairs the WH Smith ESG Steering Group, where he drives initiatives for sustainability
and social impact. Before joining WH Smith, Cowling served as Managing Director 
of Global Partnerships at Carphone Warehouse and spent over ten years in leadership
roles at Currys.

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![](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/logo@2x.png)

#### LCVS announces new CEO

[LCVS](https://www.lcvs.org.uk/) has announced that Jeff Scales will join the organisation
as its new CEO. Scales currently works for Locality, and has worked in both the 
public and VCSE sectors over the last thirty years. At Locality, which he rejoined
in 2015, he has overseen a transformational shift from a grant-funded team to one
funded entirely by programme and consultancy income obtained through a combination
of relationship building and strategic positioning, tenders, and directly commissioned
work. This includes working in partnership with local VCSE support organisations
similar to LCVS.

Scales began his career in the management and development of social housing, with
early roles involving supporting Council tenants to take on the management of their
own homes. He also managed Sheffield City Council’s portfolio of community buildings
including supporting community asset transfers.

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![](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/unnamed.jpg)

#### Camden Trust announces Robin Morgan-Chu as Chair

[Camden Giving](https://www.camdengiving.org.uk/) has appointed a new Chair: Robin
Morgan-Chu, who is Director of Partnerships and Policy at SSE – the School for Social
Entrepreneurs, and who also set up CoachBright. Morgan-Chu will take over responsibility
for leading the participatory grant-making charity for the next four years. His 
key priorities will include strengthening further participatory grant making in 
Camden and beyond; and ensuring participation and engagement are at the heart of
future charity and government decision-making. 

 The current Chair Simon Pitkeathley steps down after two four-year terms since 
the charity was founded in 2016. 

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![](https://wfay6x.infiniteuploads.cloud/2025/01/London-Marathon-Foundation-440.
jpg)

#### London Marathon Foundation appoints Mike Diaper as Group Funding & Impact Director

Mike Diaper has served as Interim Director at [London Marathon Foundation](https://www.tcslondonmarathon.com/inside-lme/london-marathon-foundation)
since June 2024. He has previously led teams in high-profile government and sports
organisations including Sport England, where he was responsible for the creation
and leadership of the children and young people, community sport and tackling inactivity
policy portfolios. He also led the government’s national school sport strategy under
Tony Blair, working across the Departments for Education and Culture, Media and 
Sport, and worked on the inclusion of children with special educational needs at
the Department for Education.

Before joining the Foundation, Diaper worked as a consultant across the education,
sport and health sectors. Projects included working on the development the £19.5
million Go! London Fund, the capital’s largest youth sports fund; project managing
the RFU’s semi-independent review of rugby union in schools; and supporting Merton
Council to become London’s first Borough of Sport. 

 * **[New Chair & trustees for CFG – plus more mover news](https://fundraising.co.uk/2025/01/13/new-chair-trustees-for-cfg-plus-more-mover-news/)**(
   13 January 2025)
 * **[British Red Cross’s Amadi among new board members for Fundraising Regulator – plus more movers](https://fundraising.co.uk/2025/01/22/british-red-crosss-amadi-among-new-board-members-for-fundraising-regulator-plus-more-movers/)**(
   22 January 2025)
 * **[New CEO for In Kind Direct, plus more charity mover news](https://fundraising.co.uk/2025/01/30/new-ceo-for-in-kind-direct-plus-more-charity-mover-news/)**(
   30 January 2025)
