Donna Hall appointed new chair of NLGN

The chief executive of Wigan Council, Donna Hall, has been named as the new chair of the New Local Government Network (NLGN).

Ms Hall succeeds Dame Jane Roberts, who has chaired the board since 2013 and will take over the position in early 2019.

As previously reported by NewStart, Ms Hall is set to retire from Wigan Council after eight years in the role.

During her time at the local authority, she has won national acclaim with bold reforms and the forging of ‘The Deal’ partnership model of local government.

She has also been a leading national voice in local government and has played a key role as part of the Greater Manchester Combined Authority.

‘It’s an absolute honour to be appointed as Chair of NLGN,’ said Ms Hall.

‘I am so impressed by the team’s innovative, cutting-edge, high-quality thought leadership that we all need more than ever over the next few years.

‘I hope that by working creatively together we can support councils to in turn give strength and confidence to their communities.’

Alongside Ms Hall’s appointment, it has also been announced that the former chief executive of Darlington Council, Ada Burns, will take up the position of vice chair, and Robert Pollock, Director at Social Finance, will take the position of Treasurer.

‘Donna has built an extraordinary reputation as a transformational leader making Wigan Council a beacon of creativity for the whole public sector,’ said NLGN director, Adam Lent.

‘Everyone at NLGN is extremely proud and excited that she will be bringing her insight to the increasingly close work we do with NLGN members as well as our thought leadership output. In particular, her experience of rethinking the relationship between the public sector and the community will be indispensable to our vision of transformation.

‘I would also like to thank Jane for her time on the board, and for the way that she has led us through a great period of change. She has been an invaluable source of wisdom, and I hope that she will continue to be part of the NLGN family for a long time to come.’