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New appointments to Executive Leadership Team confirmed

They will take up their new Executive Director positions on 30 August.

7th June 2022

We've appointed Jeanette Bain-Burnett and Lisa Dodd-Mayne to our Executive Leadership Team following a recent restructure.

Jeanette joins as the Executive Director of Policy and Integrity, a newly created role responsible for leading and developing expertise and advice in relation to the key issues and audiences that matter most to the delivery of our strategy, Uniting the Movement.

She'll also have responsibility for ensuring that integrity issues and inclusiveness are central to England’s community sport and physical activity system.  

Jeanette joins from the Trussell Trust, where she's currently Director of Participation, and she's also held a variety of senior roles for the Greater London Authority, including Head of Community Engagement and as Assistant Director for Communities and Social Policy.

She's also a former Director of the African Diaspora Dance Association (ADDA) and strategic consultant for clients including Arts Council England, Creative Lives and BBC Arts

Lisa joins as the Executive Director of Place, which is responsible for providing strategic leadership and direction for how we engage in and deliver a local and community-based approach to Uniting The Movement, including the expansion of the places in which we invest.

She'll also be tasked with building strong relationships with local organisations who have a role in the delivery of sport and physical activity across the country, and the creation of sustainable and inclusive facilities and active environments. 

Lisa joins from the University of Warwick, where she's currently Director of Sport & Active Communities and brings a strong career history working in communities and sport.

Previous roles include Director of Sport and Culture at Wakefield Council and Coventry City Council, where she headed up their sports team.

She chairs the British Universities & Colleges Sport (BUCS) Physical Activity & Health Board and represents the Higher and Further Education sectors on ukactive’s Membership Council.

Combined headshot of Jeanette Bain Burnett and Lisa Dodd-Mayne

Jeanette (left) and Lisa (right) will join Sport England on 30 August.

The roles help make up a new-look senior leadership team at Sport England.

Led by Tim Hollingsworth as Chief Executive Officer, the team also includes Nick Pontefract (Chief Strategy Officer), Ali Donnelly (Executive Director of Digital, Marketing and Communications), Phil Smith (Executive Director of Partnerships) and Rachel Musson (Interim Chief Finance Officer). 
 

"As part of the implementation of our strategy Uniting the Movement, it was vital that we reorganised internally so that we could focus on the issues and challenges that matter most as we deliver it.

"I am absolutely delighted that both Lisa and Jeanette are joining us to lead two new directorates and help take the work forward.

"It is a particularly exciting time to be joining given the massive opportunity we have to shape a sporting system that truly engages and delivers for everyone.

"I received some incredibly high calibre applications for both roles and it was a very competitive selection process, but both stood out for their skills, experience and way they saw the roles contributing to our collective ambition."

Tim Hollingsworth

Chief executive, Sport England

Jeanette Bain-Burnett

Jeanette said: "I’m excited to join Sport England’s leadership at a time when the organisation has renewed its commitment to unlock the advantages of physical activity and sport for everyone.

"The experience of moving and playing shouldn’t be off limits for any individual or community. Throughout my career I’ve worked with people who are often excluded to drive systemic change and strengthen community leadership.

"Working in the dance sector for over ten years, I saw the value of participation to transform communities.”

"As we recover from the pandemic, it’s vital that everyone in England can thrive – sport and physical activity, with all the social and health benefits they bring, should never be exclusive activities.

"Uniting the Movement offers a platform to shift the dial on long-standing inequalities so that everyone gets to play."

Lisa Dodd-Mayne

Lisa said: "Having spent my whole career ensuring people have the opportunity to be active in their own places, it is a privilege to join Sport England.

"This role presents a unique opportunity to make a sustained difference to people’s lives on a national scale.

"The changing direction of Sport England under the leadership of Tim Hollingsworth excites me and I am looking forward to joining an executive leadership team that is truly committed to reducing health inequalities through sport and physical activity.

"Uniting the Movement challenges us to work differently and we must.

"By listening to the voices of our local communities and working alongside them and our key partners, England will I am sure, become a nation that moves more."

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