Shelter welcomes two new trustees to the Board

Shelter’s Board of Trustees has confirmed Kezia Dugdale and Jason Arthur as two new appointments to the charity’s Board.

The new trustees will support the leading homelessness charity as it continues to deliver vital services and advice through the coronavirus (COVID-19) crisis, as well as delivering ambitious campaigns for change.

Kezia Dugdale is the Director of the John Smith Centre, which exists to make the positive case for politics and public service. Before that, she served as a Member of the Scottish Parliament for eight years, leading her party for two years through four national elections and the EU referendum. Beyond her working life, Kezia is on the board of Sistema, a social transformation charity which uses music to help foster teamwork, confidence, and aspiration in children across Scotland.

Dugdale, who will also sit on the Shelter Scotland Committee, a sub-committee of the Board of Trustees, said: "I have long admired Shelter's work. Its first-class campaigning skills, combined with its advice and support services, means that it regularly makes serious impact with decision-makers; impact crucially informed by the voices of people with real lived experience of housing problems and homelessness.

"With dark economic clouds ahead, the likelihood of rapidly rising unemployment and falling living standards, its work is more important than ever and I can't wait to do my bit to support it."

Jason Arthur is Director of Strategy and Innovation at Youth Futures Foundation. He is a strategy and communications specialist with over ten years’ experience in the education and youth sectors. He also has strong experience of the political sector, having served as a senior local councillor in Haringey and playing a leading role in both the #iwill and People's Vote campaigns.

Arthur said: "I'm delighted to join Shelter's board of trustees at this critical time. The pandemic has further highlighted that we face a national housing emergency that requires urgent and coordinated action.

“From delivering critical online and face-to-face services, to giving people a voice through its campaigning and research activity, Shelter is playing a vital role in defending the right to a safe home."

Helen Baker, Chair of the Shelter Board, said: “Coronavirus and the economic crisis now facing the country mean that there has never been a more important time for Shelter to stand up and defend the right to a safe home.

“As a charity, we depend on the efforts and contributions of thousands of supporters across the country. I am therefore extremely pleased to announce the appointment of two new trustees to our Board, who are absolutely committed to our purpose, but will also bring invaluable new experience, skills and perspectives to strengthen our work.

"Kezia Dugdale and Jason Arthur will both add great energy, conviction and deep political insight, and I very much look forward to working with them.”