Penny Thompson CBE
Chair of the Remuneration Committee and Deputy Chair of the Governance and Nominations Committee
Penny Thompson is Managing Director of Penny Thompson Consultancy Ltd. The Consultancy provides mentoring and assessment and undertakes individual contracts in the areas of leadership and service improvement. Penny's educational achievements include a BA Hons History (2.1) from Queen Mary College, University of London and the Certificate of Qualification in Social Work and MA in Social Work from the University of Kent.
Her previous roles include Chief Executive of two unitary Local Authorities which were Brighton and Hove Council and London Borough of Hackney and Chief Executive of a National Regulator, the General Social Care Council. Her achievements at Brighton and Hove Council included resetting the corporate plan and organisational culture; leading reductions of £75m whilst modernising services and balancing budgets; and managing the governance implications of a minority administration.
Penny is also a former Executive Director of Social Services at Sheffield City Council. Penny's current public sector and voluntary roles include Independent Chair of Birmingham Safeguarding Children Board; associate and mentor for SOLACE (Society of Local Authority Chief Executives and Senior Managers) and a member of the Board of Trustees of Barnardo's and Chair of the Children and Young Peoples Committee. Penny is a former associate and senior independent assessor for the College of Policing. Penny was awarded a CBE in 2012 and is a Fellow of the RSA (Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce).
Penny is Chair of the Remuneration Committee and Deputy Chair of the Governance and Nominations Committee.
Period of office: April 2017 – July 2024