The Women’s Sport Trust (WST), the charity at the forefront of driving change within the sports industry, has appointed Suzy Levy as its new Chair of Trustees. Levy, a prominent social change and diversity expert, has served on the board of the organisation for more than 10 years. Joining her will be four new Trustees who have been appointed to help the charity drive forward its mission to make women’s sport more ‘visible, viable and unstoppable’.
Levy has three decades of experience leading change – and is widely recognised for her strategic approach to inclusion and diversity. She runs her own consultancy and has held a variety of board-level roles including 7 years as a non-Executive Director in the UK government. She recently published her first book, Mind the Inclusion Gap.
Levy says, “WST is an organisation that understands that to achieve change you need to acknowledge and address barriers. I am excited to work with our CEO and talented group of Trustees to drive meaningful outcomes for women’s sport.”
Levy’s first order of business was to help replace Sue Day, Zarah Al Kudcy and Claire Bennett who recently stepped down as Trustees. Four new Trustees have recently taken their posts. They are:
Stefanie Reid MBE – Stef is a British Paralympic long jumper and sprinter. She is a World Champion, four-time Paralympian, triple Paralympic medallist, and five-time world record holder. Stef has served as Vice President of the UK Athletics Members Council, member of the London 2017 board, and member of the British Paralympic Committee Athlete’s Council. Since retiring from sport, she has built a strong broadcasting career most recently anchoring the Paralympics Game in Paris for CBC. She has also featured on prime time shows including Celebrity MasterChef and Dancing on Ice.
Patrick Massey – Patrick is a Partner at Portas Consulting, the leading global management consultancy dedicated to sport and physical activity. He leads the UK and Europe business, and is also the Global Head of Football, Rugby and Women’s Sport. Over the past 15 years, he has advised major national and international sports organisations and leaders of multinational corporations on some of their biggest and most complex challenges.
Melissa Robertson – Melissa is the CEO of Dark Horses, a creative agency focused on sport, health and wellness. She is a vocal supporter of gender equality, and has proudly worked across numerous initiatives in that space. She is a Director of Menopause Mandate, a not-for-profit organisation that lobbies for more support and education around menopause. Melissa is also a member of WACL, an influential network of women leaders in communications, and she was recognised in the IPA iList 2022, which celebrates the industry’s change-makers and role models.
Russell James – Russell runs his own consultancy focused on supporting commercial outcomes in and around the sport Industry. His career has spanned working for big brands such Procter and Gamble and Hilton as well as working at rights holders. He held senior roles at both The FA and ECB where he was key part of modernising the approach to marketing, commercial and digital strategy in both organisations. He is a NED at BUCS which is an organisation that engages the next generation of leaders, team players and sports enthusiasts.
WST has spent over a decade campaigning for change. Its focus has been to provide the industry with much-needed insight and data to help prove the case for women’s sport. It champions the athlete voice and the need for diverse role-models and digs deep into the barriers around attracting more investment. It works by convening senior leaders around key issues to understand how to make the system fairer for all.
Tammy Parlour, CEO and Co-Founder of WST says, “I am thrilled that Suzy accepted the opportunity to step up to the role of Chair. She has been an excellent strategic advisor since she joined the board and her understanding of how to navigate change is a huge asset given women’s sport trajectory. It’s also exciting to be adding such depth of experience to our board. This cohort of Trustees are the best in their respective fields, and I look forward to working with them to shape our strategy and campaigning. Women’s sport is at an exciting moment in time, and with this team I’m sure we will continue to tackle the tough questions and work with partners across the industry to make lasting change.”