Sir Martin Narey to become chair of The Brain Tumour Charity
Former prison service chief takes on new role
THE Brain Tumour Charity is delighted to announce the appointment of Sir Martin Narey as its new chair of trustees.
Sir Martin, formerly chief executive of Barnardo’s and ex-director general of the prison service in England and Wales, will take up the post on 1 April.
His appointment comes as The Charity seeks to accelerate change for those affected by brain tumours, which kill more children and adults under 40 in the UK than any other cancer.
Its new five-year strategy sets out plans to double survival from brain tumours and halve the harm they cause to quality of life by 2020.
The charity aims to secure investment of at least £20million into brain tumour research over the same period.
Sarah Lindsell, chief executive of The Brain Tumour Charity, said: “We are tremendously excited to welcome Sir Martin as our Chair of Trustees.
“His knowledge and experience of both the charity sector and Whitehall, coupled with his early career in the NHS, make him the ideal candidate to lead our board at this crucial stage.
“We are determined to drive brain tumours up the national agenda, giving a voice to everyone affected by this devastating disease and accelerating the search for more effective treatments.”
Sir Martin began his working life in the NHS before training as a prison governor.
He went on to become director general of the prison service in England and Wales and was the first chief executive of the National Offender Management Service.
He left the civil service in 2005 to become chief executive of Barnardo’s, a position he held for six years.
Since 2011 he has advised government on adoption and other children’s issues.
Sir Martin said: “I am delighted to take on this role. I have been lucky enough to be able to consider a number of approaches to become a charity chair in the last year or so.
“But of all the charities with which I have had conversations, The Brain Tumour Charity stood out for several reasons.
“I am impressed that their overheads are genuinely tiny and that they spend nearly every penny they raise on medical research and raising awareness of this terrible disease.
“They have made a measurable impact and their ambitions are exciting. I hope I can help them achieve their goals.”
Polly Newton, PR and Media Manager, The Brain Tumour Charity.
DD: 01252 418191 | M: 07990 828385 | polly.newton@thebraintumourcharity.org
About The Brain Tumour Charity
Registered Charity No. 1150054 (England and Wales) SC045081 (Scotland)
The Brain Tumour Charity is at the forefront of the fight to defeat brain tumours and is making a difference every day to the lives of people with a brain tumour and their families.
They fund pioneering research to increase survival and improve treatment options and raise awareness of the symptoms and effects of brain tumours to get earlier diagnosis and to help families cope with everything that the diagnosis of a brain tumour brings. They provide support for everyone affected so that they can live as full a life as possible, with the best quality of life.
They fund and promote the UK-wide HeadSmart campaign, raising awareness of the signs and symptoms of brain tumours in children and young people to make earlier diagnosis a reality. Earlier diagnosis will reduce long term disabilities and save lives. In just thee years, HeadSmart has reduced average diagnosis time from 9.1 weeks to 6.7 weeks.
Find out more at: www.thebraintumourcharity.org
Members of the Association of Medical Research Charities, The Information Standard, The Helplines Partnership and the Fundraising Standards Board.
Brain tumours – the facts
Brain tumours are the biggest cancer killer of children and adults under 40.
Over 9,300 people are diagnosed each year with a primary brain tumour, including 500 children and young people – that’s 25 people every day.
Almost 5,000 people lose their lives to a brain tumour each year.
Thousands more are diagnosed with secondary brain tumours, which are not recorded.
Brain tumours reduce life expectancy by on average 20 years – the highest of any cancer.
Just 14% of adults survive for five years after diagnosis.
Brain tumours are the largest cause of preventable or treatable blindness in children.
Childhood brain tumour survivors are 10 times more likely to suffer long term disability than well children.
This accounts for 20,000 additional disabled life years for all the children who are diagnosed each year.
Research offers the only real hope of dramatic improvements in the management and treatment of brain tumours.
Over £500m is spent on cancer research in the UK every year, yet less than 2% is spent on brain tumours.
