Senior charity and fundraising appointments in March 2026
Howard Lake | 3 March 2026 | News
Appointments this month include a new patron at Midlands Air Ambulance Charity, new trustees at Hendy Foundation, two board appointments at Movember Europe, a new Partnerships & Growth Director at GoDonate, the new Chair at BookTrust, a board Chair at the Molly Huggins Foundation, an experienced fundraiser as trustee at the Humanimal Trust, a Chair at The Royal Parks, and a Director of Brand, Marketing and Fundraising at Crisis.
Art of Wishes Chair moves to new role of Founder and Honorary President
Art of Wishes, a charitable initiative that supports Make-A-Wish UK (a wish granting charity for critically ill children) has announced a new Interim Chair of Art of Wishes. This follows Batia Ofer’s announcement at the Art of Wishes Gala in October that she was stepping down from her role of Chair.
Batia has now transitioned into the new role of Founder and Honorary President and will continue to support the initiative whilst stepping back from day-to-day leadership.
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Batia Ofer is an art collector and philanthropist and has been involved with the Make-A-Wish Foundation since 2008. In 2017, she became Patron of Make-A-Wish UK and founded Art of Wishes, a fundraising initiative that brings the art and creative community together to support Make-A-Wish UK in granting wishes to children living with a critical illness.
Through a programme of prestigious events and brand collaborations, Batia Ofer has worked with internationally acclaimed artists, including Dame Tracey Emin and Jenny Saville, alongside leading galleries, auction houses, collectors, and philanthropists. Since 2017, these initiatives have generated over £15 million and enabled the granting of over 6,000 wishes.
Jason Suckley, CEO Make-A-Wish UK commented:
“We extend our profound gratitude to Batia for her unwavering dedication, passion and vision and for establishing such a successful programme within the art community. Through granting over 6,000 wishes she has helped changed the lives of so many children and their families, what an incredible legacy.”
Gia de Picciotto, a founding member of Art of Wishes, will assume the role of Interim Chair. She has worked with Make‑A‑Wish UK since she moved to London 25 years ago and has served on the boards of Southbank International School, the NSPCC and the Bridgehampton Childcare & Recreational Center.
Midlands Air Ambulance Charity appoints Sir David Nicholson as patron
Midlands Air Ambulance Charity (MAAC) has announced the appointment of Sir David Nicholson KCB CBE as its new Patron. The announcement comes as the charity marks 35 years of providing lifesaving pre-hospital emergency care across the Midlands region.
Sir David brings decades of senior leadership expertise, including as the former Chief Executive of NHS England, where he oversaw significant national reforms and championed improvements in patient outcomes. His experience across the NHS and global health sector is expected to strengthen MAAC’s mission to deliver exceptional pre-hospital emergency care and support its ongoing investment in critical care provision.
Hanna Sebright, MAAC’s Chief Executive Officer said that Sir David’s “reputation, experience and passion for improving patient outcomes” make him an ideal Patron, whose support “will be invaluable as we continue to develop our clinical services”.
Hendy Foundation makes new trustee appointments
The Hendy Foundation, the charitable arm of the Hendy car dealer network, has expanded its Board of Trustees with new appointments to maximise fundraising for local projects. The new trustees bring expertise across business partnerships, charity engagement, communications, finance, and fundraising.
The move follows the Foundation’s latest funding round in late 2025, which saw grants totalling more than £61,000 awarded to over 50 non-profit organisations. With a fundraising target of £90,000 set for 2026, the Foundation is on track to take the total amount donated since its 2018 launch to more than £500,000. New appointees include Simon Palmer and Kayleigh Smith as Business Relationship Trustees, and Kevin Fisher and Claire Bradley as Charity Relationship Trustees.
Movember appoints Andrew Evans and Lorraine Higgins to Movember Europe board
Movember has announced the appointment of Andrew Evans and Lorraine Higgins to the Board of Movember Europe, aiming to strengthen governance and leadership across the region. The charity states these appointments are critical for supporting its strategy, growth, and impact across Europe.
Andrew Evans is the co-founder and Group CEO of Smart, a global fintech business, and a trustee of the Anna Freud children and family mental health charity. He is noted for his deep experience in scaling purpose-driven organisations. Lorraine Higgins, a qualified barrister, brings extensive experience in public policy, government affairs, and law, including a tenure as a former Irish Senator. Movember CEO, Michelle Terry, stated their complementary expertise will be invaluable as the charity continues to grow its impact.
GoDonate appoints Derek Hill
Charity donation platform goDonate has appointed Derek Hill as Director of Partnerships & Growth.
Hill joins goDonate with more than 15 years’ experience in charity partnerships, digital fundraising and tech for good, across leading platforms and charities including JustGiving, Farewill, NSPCC and Save The Children. Most recently he was Head of Charity Partnerships at Willfully.
In the newly created role at goDonate, Hill will lead charity partnerships, with a focus on strengthening existing client relationships and developing complementary partnerships.
He said: “Charities face a challenging online fundraising landscape amid tighter household budgets and increasing competition for donor attention. Donors have growing expectations of frictionless, personalised and transparent digital giving. Our job is to use technology to enhance donation journeys and optimise fundraising for charities”.
The role encompasses providing proactive and structured support to existing and new partners, such as increased strategic guidance on optimising donation performance and supporter engagement programmes.
Vicky Reeves, goDonate’s Founder and CEO, comments: “We’ve created this new role to support our next phase of growth, and also scale our client base and partnership opportunities. Derek brings platform expertise, sector know-how and data-informed partnership support and development experience to the business, and our clients and partners”.
Radha Chakraborty appointed Chair of BookTrust
The UK’s largest reading charity, BookTrust, has appointed Radha Chakraborty as its new Chair as it continues its mission to ensure all children experience the magic of shared reading.
Radha takes up her new position this month, bringing her experience across the public and private sectors to help BookTrust achieve its aims.
She takes over the role from outgoing Chair John Coughlan CBE, who has led the charity through significant change and growth since 2018.
Radha has extensive experience in driving behavioural change at scale and improving the lives of people with low incomes, both of which are a key focus for BookTrust. She is currently Campaigns Director of DMI, delivering national and multi-country behaviour change campaigns to improve child health and cognitive outcomes across sub-Saharan Africa. As Chair of the Bell Foundation, she works to improve English language education for children and adults in the UK.
Radha was previously Vice Chair of BookTrust until 2024. She also brings experience of the charity sector, having previously worked for Comic Relief, and of the wider arts sector in her role as a Non-Executive Director at Screen Yorkshire.
Her appointment comes as BookTrust embarks on a five-year strategy.
Qadeer Kiani is Chair of Board of Trustees at The Molly Huggins Foundation
The Molly Huggins Foundation, the charitable arm of Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing (MTVH), has appointed Qadeer Kiani as Chair of its Board of Trustees.
Qadeer succeeds interim chair Kush Rawal, who led the Foundation through its formation and first year.
Qadeer has extensive experience in social housing spanning almost four decades in diverse, multi-faceted organisations in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. He has held senior management positions at housing associations including Populo, Hightown and Pinnacle and in the private sector, and has served as an advisor to the NHS.
The Molly Huggins Foundation has been set up to invest in communities and support people facing challenges such as food insecurity, debt, skills gaps and educational needs. It is named after MTVH’s founder, Lady Molly Huggins, who set up Metropolitan Housing Trust, now MTVH, in the 1950s to support Windrush generation migrants seeking housing in the UK.
The Foundation’s aim is to invest £75 million in community impact projects by 2034 through MTVH funds, fundraising and partnerships.
John Grounds joins Humanimal Trust as trustee
Humanimal Trust, the charity founded by orthopaedic veterinary surgeon Professor Noel Fitzpatrick to drive collaboration between human and veterinary medicine – known as One Medicine – has announced the appointment of John Grounds as a trustee.
John is a consultant specialising in strategy, brand, communications, campaigning and fundraising, alongside organisational, team and personal development. He has worked with leaders, teams and stakeholders in more than 75 organisations in his 12 years as a consultant, including Humanimal Trust.
Before that he spent nearly 30 years in senior roles at charities including NSPCC, RSPCA, Action Medical Research and Barnardo’s, as well as ethical retailer The Body Shop.
He is a mentor for the Association of Chief Executives of Voluntary Organisations (ACEVO) and CharityComms; former non-executive chair of Forster Communications and chair of trustees for CharityComms.
He is a past member of the Cabinet Office Communications Strategy and Evaluation Council and board member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR), Child Exploitation and Online Protection centre (CEOP) and UK Council for Child Internet Safety (UKCCIS).
In 2025 he was appointed visiting fellow at the Henley Business School, University of Reading.
John said: “As someone who has been an adviser, volunteer and supporter of the Trust for many years – and a proud signatory of the One Medicine Pledge – I hope my input and experience will help the Trust to progress still further towards its ultimate goal of a One Medicine world.”
Dr Linda Yueh CBE appointed as Chair of The Royal Parks
The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport has appointed Dr Linda Yueh CBE as the new Chair of The Royal Parks charity. She has been appointed on a term of four years, starting this week on 1 March 2026.
Sir Loyd Grossman CBE is the current Chair of The Royal Parks. His term came to an end on 28 February 2026.
Dr Linda Yueh CBE is Fellow in Economics at St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford, and Adjunct Professor of Economics at London Business School. She was appointed CBE for services to economics. She is a member of the English Law Promotion Panel and the UK Soft Power Council, chairs a London Stock Exchange-listed investment company, and serves as a non-executive director of FTSE 100 companies. She is also a trustee of UK and international charitable foundations.
Dr Yueh was previously Executive Chair of the Royal Commonwealth Society and a board member of London & Partners, London’s growth agency, including during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
Tamsin Baxter joins Crisis as Director of Brand, Marketing and Fundraising
Crisis has announced Tamsin Baxter as their Director of Brand, Marketing and Fundraising to lead on the organisation’s work raising awareness and funds for people experiencing homelessness.
Tamsin Baxter brings over 20 years of experience in fundraising and marketing to the role, including senior positions at Refugee Council, Scope and Fight for Sight. Her expertise spans major fundraising appeals, transformational partnerships and re-branding programmes, which includes Refugee Council’s first major rebrand in three decades.
In addition Tamsin is an established communications specialist having led media, public affairs, campaigns and internal communications teams.
About Howard Lake
Howard Lake is consultant editor of UK Fundraising. He founded the site in 1994 and successfully sold it in 2022. As director of Giving X Ltd he is exploring growing giving on a massive scale.
He is the founder of Fundraising Camp and co-founder of GoodJobs.