Campaign to Protect Rural England announces chief executive is moving on
Campaign to Protect Rural England
Shaun Spiers to be director of Green Alliance.
CPRE congratulates its chief executive Shaun Spiers who is leaving to head up independent think tank and charity Green Alliance, which is coordinating the environment sector’s response to Brexit through the Greener UK Coalition.
Shaun has led CPRE for almost 13 years and says although he’s sad to be leaving, he predicts a great future for the organisation.
‘CPRE is hugely effective in standing up for the English countryside and I am proud to have led it for so long. The organisation is in a good place with strong finances, an ambitious new strategic plan and a great track record of recent successes both in stopping damaging development and promoting changes that improve the countryside.
‘I have loved working with CPRE’s terrific team of staff and our dedicated branches and volunteers across England. But Brexit presents the biggest challenge and the greatest opportunities the environment and countryside have faced in Britain for at least a generation. The opportunity to lead Green Alliance at this time was too good to resist.’
During his time as chief executive CPRE has played a leading role in resisting several major assaults on the planning system and Green Belt policy; gaining funding to underground overhead wires in designated landscape; winning designation of the South Downs National Park; and securing a charge for single use carrier bags. Under Shaun’s leadership, CPRE developed a progressive vision for the future of the countryside, and played a major role not only in opposing inappropriate development, but promoting better development, in particular affordable rural housing.
Chair Su Sayer expressed her thanks for all Shaun’s work at CPRE and said he would be much missed. ‘Shaun has taken CPRE from strength to strength. He has been an inspirational chief executive and we have been fortunate to have him at the helm for so long. We wish him every success and look forward to working with him in his new role.’
Shaun will move to Green Alliance at the beginning of June.
