The Council of The Prince's Trust - Cymru

The Wales Council is established by The Council. Its function is to provide high level support to the Wales Director to enable him/her to develop and deliver the Business Plan and Budget. The Wales Council has no executive responsibility for the management, operations or administration of The Trust.

Steve Thomas C.B.E.

Chief Executive, Welsh Local Government Association

Steve Thomas is Chief Executive of the WLGA, taking up the post in March 2004. Appointed in October 2000 as Head of Strategic Policy, Steve has worked in local government since 1989. He started within the field of Economic Development and was then tasked in the early 1990s with the project management of the reorganisation of Islwyn Borough Council, leading up to the establishment of the new unitary authority Caerphilly County Borough Council in 1996. Steve was a senior chief officer who managed a range of functions including corporate strategy, democratic services, elections and the Wales Programme for Improvement.

The WLGA is the representative body for the 22 unitary authorities in Wales, the 4 police authorities, 3 national parks and 3 fire authorities. Steve is Joint Secretary of the statutory Partnership Council between the National Assembly for Wales and the WLGA. He also sits on a huge range of national bodies and Chairs the Prince’s Trust Cymru Council. Steve has a First Class Honours Degree in History and Politics and a Masters in Public Management. He was awarded a CBE in the 2010 Queen’s Birthday Honours list.

Chris Jones

Finance Director, Welsh Water

Chris Jones has been Finance Director of Welsh Water since its acquisition by Glas Cymru in May 2001. Glas Cymru is a not-for-profit company which was founded by Chris and Nigel Annett in April 2000 for the sole purpose of acquiring Welsh Water. The acquisition was financed by one of the largest UK bond issues ever seen, totalling some £1.9 billion. Glas Cymru is a private sector company with no shareholders, so it is run solely for the benefit of its customers. To date, some £150 million has been returned to customers through its annual customer dividend.

Chris is a Non-Executive Director of The Principality Building Society, a Fellow of the Institute of Welsh Affairs and a Governor of Brecon High School. Previously, Chris was a Director in the London office of National Economic Research Associates (NERA). He began his career working for HM Treasury. Chris joined the Prince’s Trust Cymru Council in 2009.

David Rosser

Director, CBI

David Rosser is CBI Director for Wales and the South West of England, and is responsible for managing relationships with the Welsh Assembly Government and the South West Regional Assembly. He is a Director of the Wales Social Partners Unit, which has been established to help business organisations interact with the Assembly. Also, a member of the Board of Governors of the University of Wales Institute, Cardiff, and a Board member of The Prince’s Trust Cymru Council.

Prior to taking up his current post, he ran one of the Welsh Development Agency’s inward investment teams, following a career in banking.

David was born in Swansea and spent most of his childhood in Neath and Whitland before attending university in London and Cardiff.

Victoria Provis

Partner, Odgers Berndtson

Victoria Provis is a native of Cardiff. After an early career in corporate communications and professional services marketing with companies including  McKinsey & Company and Burson Marsteller, Victoria moved into executive search in 1993. She has been a Partner at Odgers Berndtson in London since 1995 and specialises in leading corporate communications and board-level appointments (both executive and non-executive) across the UK and Continental Europe. She opened the firm’s Cardiff office in 2005 and remains a Non-Executive Director. Dividing her time between London and St Davids, Victoria is a Trustee of  Amgueddfa Cymru/National Museum Wales and a Member of Glas Cymru. She is also a former Vice-Chair of the Board of Atlantic College.

Nonna Woodward

Vice Chair, NWN Media 

Nonna Woodward has a business background as Vice chair of NWN Media her family's independent publishing company in North Wales publishing newspapers and contract printing. Throughout her career, she has sat on many boards, including the Prince's Trust Cymru, successfully chairing an appeal to raise £2.5m for a cancer outpatient's unit at the Wrexham Maelor Hospital, further enhancing this unit by building a linked Macmillan information unit and currently adding a garden of sanctity beside it, chairing the IOD in Wales, chairing the North Wales branch of the Institute of Welsh Affairs, Vice chair of Ellesmere College, Vice chair at the RJAH Orthopaedic Hospital, former member of the Arts Council Wales, WDA board member, sitting on the board of NEWI prior to it becoming Glyndwr and was Vice Chair of the Clwyd Family Health Services Authority. She is always keen to promote North Wales and demonstrates this by her involvment in the region. Alongside these commitments she is now also a therapist of the Bowen Technique, Thought Field Therapy and Reiki and sings in the Cantorion Rhos Choir.

John Rees

Retired

John Rees lives in honourable retirement in Talley near Llandeilo, overlooking its ruined Abbey and lakes. He chairs the Community Woodland, is an active Trustee of the Llandeilo Music Festival, referees school rugby and is an international educational consultant (crosses the bridge from time to time!).

In 1976 he became a member of the Youth Involvement Committee of the Queen’s Silver Jubilee Appeal, and subsequently a member of the Admin Council of the Jubilee Trusts, where he played key roles in the creation of the Prince’s Youth Business Trust, and the Prince of Wales Community Volunteers. He ran the largest school community service organisation in the UK for ten years, before becoming Headmaster of Blundell’s School in Devon and subsequently the Rector of the Edinburgh Academy. He established the first Urban Study Centre and first Information Technology Centre, in Notting Dale, with particular focus on youngsters with few qualifications and limited aspirations and career expectations. He was Chair of Youth Clubs UK and founder director of the Mid Devon Enterprise Agency, and chairman of the Prince’ Trust in Devon He has been a trustee of the SFIA Educational Trust for many years.

Alison Ward

Chief Executive ,Torfaen County Borough Council

Alison is Chief Executive of Torfaen County Borough Council. Alison read Law at Exeter University. She joined West Glamorgan County Council in 1987 as a Solicitor and specialised in child care law. She then worked for Neath Port Talbot CBC as Assistant Director of Social Services and Housing where she also acted as Social Inclusion Advisor to the WLGA.  She joined Torfaen in 2002 as Assistant Chief Executive and was appointed as Chief Executive in November 2004. Alison is a Non Executive Director of the Institute of Customer Services, Chair of the Welsh Public Service Employers Group, lead Chief Executive for the Connecting South East Wales Board of local authorities and a member of the Ministerial Advisory Group on Public Service Delivery. She was Chair of the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives in Wales during 2009/10.

Peter Vaughan BSc (Hons), Dip.App.Crim.

Chief Constable

Peter Vaughan joined South Wales Police in 1984, having achieved a BSc First Class (Management Science and Operations Research) from the University of Wales, Swansea. He holds a Diploma in Applied Criminology and Police Management from the University of Cambridge gained as part of the Strategic Command Course. Peter was appointed Chief Constable of South Wales Police in July 2009 and took up post on 1st January 2010. Nationally, he chairs the ACPO Acquisitive Crime Committee. Within Wales, he is a Council Member of the Prince’s Trust Cymru and Advisory Board Member of the BITC. He is a Trustee for the South Wales Police Youth Trust and also Chair of the Local Criminal Justice Board and Safer South Wales Group.