Displaying items by tag: the printing charity

The Printing Charity has confirmed Neil Lovell’s appointment as the charity’s permanent Chief Executive and Secretary. He was appointed to the role on an interim basis in February this year.

During his time as interim Chief Executive, his focus has been on meeting people in the print industry and the charity’s partners, as well as getting to know the staff and trustees, and looking at the direction of the charity.

Neil Lovell says: “The Printing Charity has a proud heritage and very clear aims of promoting independence and furthering education. I have been looking at how we can make it easier for individuals needing our support, and the industry we represent to connect with us. It’s clear we cannot do everything on our own but we have great potential to build strong partnerships with the industry and other bodies with similar aims to ours.”

He has 27 years’ experience in senior communications, marketing, fundraising, and management roles. He began his career in a traditional ad agency off Fleet Street, followed by commercial roles at T-Mobile and RAC plc. He joined the not-for-profit sector in 2009 and prior to joining The Printing Charity he was CEO of the Jamie Oliver Food Foundation. He is a supporter of the education and skills sector and is a trustee of the Further Education Trust for Leadership, an independent Further Education (FE) and skills sector think tank and grant-awarding charity.

Jon Wright, The Printing Charity’s Chairman, says: “Neil brings a wealth of experience from the commercial and not-for-profit sectors to the Chief Executive’s role to drive the charity forward and has the full support of the trustees as he works with us to refocus our work and deliver greater impact.”

About The Printing Charity:

The Printing Charity is proud of its heritage and has been supporting people of all ages working in printing, packaging and publishing since 1827.  Its charitable aims include promoting independence, protecting dignity and furthering education.  It meets the needs of those it helps through one-off and regular grants, and working strategically with industry partners to attract and retain future talent in the industry. Please see www.theprintingcharity.org.uk for more information.

HRH The Duke of York, KG, in his role as The Printing Charity’s President for 2015, attended the charity’s 188^th Annual Luncheon at Stationers’ Hall, London on 5 November.

The Duke of York said it had been an honour to be The Printing Charity’s President for 2015 and congratulated the charity on what it has done and continues to do to help people in difficulty, as well as young people coming into the printing industry to develop the skills they need.

Speaking at the event, The Duke of York said: “Printing is part of life, but it requires skills. Thank you to everyone here today for the work you do to raise the printing industry’s profile and encourage young people to become skilled.”

The Printing Charity’s Chairman, Jon Wright, announced that in 2015, the year the charity is marking the 150^th anniversary of the granting of its first Royal Charter by Queen Victoria, it will help over 1,000 people. He outlined how the charity will achieve this through its financial grants programme, its two sheltered homes, initiatives such as the Print Futures Awards, and partnerships with other charities and organisations.

Jon Wright said: “Our work is also focused on apprenticeships. This includes helping to fund a teacher’s resource pack promoting apprenticeships to 15-18 year olds. In 2016, as part of the print industry led apprenticeship trailblazer, the charity will be assisting apprentices with costs associated with their study.”

At the event, The Duke of York presented Lord Black of Brentwood, Executive Director of the Telegraph Media Group and the charity’s Vice President, with a President Emeritus Award for his work on the charity’s behalf.

Jon Wright and Steve Sibbald were unanimously elected Chairman and Deputy Chairman respectively of The Printing Charity for a third term at the Charity’s Annual General Meeting held on 10 June at Southwood Court, Basildon, its sheltered home for people who have retired from the printing industry.

Jon Wright joined the Charity as a Trustee and Honorary Treasurer in 2004, becoming Chairman of the Investment Committee in 2007. A qualified accountant with the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants, he started at the Financial Times in 1974 and worked his way up to Acting Finance Director. Since 2003, he has been the Finance Director of Pearson Global Real Estate.

Steve Sibbald joined the printing industry in 1971 as an apprentice hot metal compositor, was appointed FOC at the age of 24 and became a full-time Unite official the following year. He was a National, Regional and Branch Official of Unite, the GMPU and NGA for a total of 33 years, as well as having roles within Uni-Network International. A member of the Charity’s Council since 2005, he also leads its East Anglia Committee.

Stephen Gilbert, Chief Executive of The Printing Charity, says: “The Charity is fortunate to have a very dedicated Council of Trustees led by Jon and Steve for a third term working with us to achieve our goal of helping more people year-on-year.”

About The Printing Charity:

Whatever a person’s job is or was for three years in an organisation that produces a printed output – printing, publishing, packaging, operating presses, driving, advertising, graphic arts, photography, cleaning, through to making ink and recycling paper – The Printing Charity helps people of all ages, including dependent family members. See www.theprintingcharity.org.uk

A walk through history with The Printing Charity

The Printing Charity marked the 150^th anniversary of the granting of its first Royal Charter with a reception held at St Bride Foundation on 12 May 2015. The event’s theme was looking to the future, building on the past.

Guests were taken on a walk through history with scenes presented by professional actors in ten of the Foundation’s rooms. The history snapshots included the charity’s founding in 1827 at the Kings Head Tavern, Poultry; a Festival dinner with a reading of an extract from Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol”; the signing of the charity’s Charter by Queen Victoria; the London Blitz; and the 1980s’ Wapping dispute.

An Adana Printing Press was set up at the reception so guests could print their own pledge of support for The Printing Charity whether it be encouraging people they know needing financial support to contact the charity, fundraising ideas or cash donations.

Jon Wright, The Printing Charity’s Chairman, explained: “Our Royal Charter sets out why we exist, what we can do, and the people we can help. Since our first Royal Charter, we’ve been granted a Supplemental Charter in 1972 and a second Royal Charter in 2014 enabling us to help more people, including young people who intend working in the industry.”

Stephen Gilbert, The Printing Charity’s Chief Executive, said: “We’re not going to disappear because we know there are people out there who need our help as much as they did in 1865 when our first Royal Charter was granted.”

About The Printing Charity:

Whatever a person’s job is or was for three years in an organisation that produces a printed output – printing, publishing, packaging, operating presses, driving, cleaning, advertising, warehousing, photography, journalism, graphic arts, making ink, recycling paper – The Printing Charity helps people of all ages, including dependent family members. See www.theprintingcharity.org.uk

Dr Mark Johnson has joined The Printing Charity as Helps and Futures Manager to help the charity increase the number of people it supports year-on-year.

As well as managing the charity’s day-to-day Helps programme of financial support for individuals, he is responsible for developing long-term relationships with organisations and other charities to increase uptake of the charity’s services by individuals.  

Johnson’s career has spanned some 20 years in the Third Sector in management and leadership roles, as well as in self-employment providing training, development and support for a number of organisations. He has also studied at the University of St Andrews, writing his Ph.D. looking at the relationship between Theology and the Arts and the power of the imagination.

Dr Johnson says: “I am looking forward to playing a part in helping those who benefit from The Printing Charity’s support and in building new working relationships. The charity has such a long, rich history and positive outlook for the future that it is clearly an exciting time to become involved.”

Stephen Gilbert, The Printing Charity’s Chief Executive, says: “We’re pleased to welcome Mark on board. His expertise will be invaluable both on a day-to-day basis managing our grants and at a strategic level taking the charity forward.”

About The Printing Charity:

Whatever a person’s job is or was for three years in an organisation that produces a printed output – printing, publishing, operating presses, driving, cleaning, advertising, warehousing, photography, journalism, graphic arts, making ink, recycling paper – The Printing Charity helps people of all ages, including dependent family members. See www.theprintingcharity.org.uk