DCMS and the Secretary of State have announced the appointment of four new members to serve on the board of the National Lottery Community Fund.

Commonly referred to as the ‘Big Lottery Fund’ – the Community Fund is managed as an independent public body that is charged with overseeing the grant-making duties and distribution of funds for good causes generated by the National Lottery.

The Community Fund is chaired by Blondel Cluff CBE, who took leadership of the body in 2021, which saw it distribute over £750m in grants to +20,000 charity/public organisations during 2020/2021.

DCMS has announced that the board of the Community Fund will be strengthened and diversified by the appointment of Richard Collier-Keywood OBE, Stuart Hobley, Helen Stephenson CBE, and Peter Stewart MVO.

The former Vice-Chairman of Big-Four auditor PWC – Richard Collier-Keywood OBE is an expert in educational development and funding, in which he currently serves as the Chair of Big Education and the Chair of New Forest Care – a company that provides bespoke care and education to children with learning difficulties.

Returning to work with the National Lottery is Stuart Hobley, a former advisor to the Heritage Lottery Fund and the current Director of The Linbury Trust, an independent grant-making foundation that supports a wide range of organisation

A figurehead of the UK charity sector, Helen Stephenson is Chief Executive of the Charity Commission for England and Wales – a non-ministerial government department which employs around 400 staff and is responsible for regulating over 168,000 charities.

The quartet of new Big Fund advisors is completed by the appointment of Peter Stewart, MVO Executive Director of The Eden Project.

One of the UK’s leading expert’s in climate change, Stewart has headed-up several ESG behavioural change campaigns working with Britain’s biggest employers including the National Dairy Council (milk), Courage Breweries, Proctor and Gamble, Philip Morris and Nestle.

Board Members of the National Lottery Community Fund are offered remuneration of £7848 per annum. Helen Stephenson will not receive remuneration from the NLCF while she is Chief Executive of the Charity Commission for England and Wales.