The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has appointed the serving Board member of the Commission as the organisation's interim Chair.
Mark Simms, OBE, will lead the Commission from 25 April 2025 on an interim basis while DCMS continues its search for a permanent Chair. Mark joined the Charity Commission as a Board Member in March 2023 and was awarded an OBE in 2024 for services to social enterprise.
In response, Orlando Fraser KC, said:
I very much welcome the news of Mark Simms's appointment as interim Chair to succeed me. I have known Mark personally a long time, both at the Rugby Portobello Trust and most recently from his role here as a Member of the Commission, and I could not think of a better person for the job.
Mark Simms, OBE said:
It will be an honour to step into this role at such a crucial time for the sector. Charities are at the heart of our communities, and I am committed to ensuring the Commission remains fair, balanced, and effective in its work.
As a charity leader myself, I understand the challenges charities face and the importance of regulation that strengthens, rather than stifles, their impact and continues to uphold the trust that charities need to thrive.
Charity Commission chair Orlando Fraser announced he would "hand on the baton" after almost seven and a half years at its APM in November .
Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, Lisa Nandy thanked him for his service to the Charity Commission as Chair and board member, and for "his work towards a fairer, balanced and independent Charity Commission."
Interim Chair appointed to the Charity Commission for England and Wales - GOV.UK
