Actors’ Benevolent Fund

The new board of the Actors' Benevolent Fund are 'very energised' to continue to provide support to actors and stage managers

Photo: Actors’ Benevolent Fund

Changing Faces

Actors’ charity names new trustees after leadership shakeup

Arts Professional
2 min read

The Actors’ Benevolent Fund (ABF) has named 12 new trustees and four co-opted trustees.

Joining the charity’s board are SIMON CALLOW, LESLEY JOSEPH, ROB RINDER, ABI ENIOLA, HANNAH WHITTINGHAM, ALEX MACQUEEN, MARILYN CUTTS, ESHWAR ALLADI, ANDREW JARVIS, SARAH ALFORD-SMITH, JASSA AHLUWALIA and PATRICK O'KANE. 

Meanwhile, LOYD GROSSMAN, SARAH WATKINSON, CHRIS HEAGREN and PAUL CARTWRIGHT will become co-opted trustees. 

Grossman said: “ It is an enormous privilege for me to join the board of the Actors’ Benevolent Fund at what I believe is going to be an exciting and transformational time as we work to provide ever more help to those in the profession in need of support.”

Joseph added: “I really look forward to taking this charity forward and getting down to doing what we are here for."

ABF, which has around £40m in assets and operates hardship funds to support actors and stage managers in England and Wales, has been embroiled in a leadership row since 2022 when a group of 10 trustees, led by former ABF President for 32 years Dame Penelope Keith, was ousted from the board. Earlier this month, alleged electoral fraud at the charity led to the launch of a police investigation.

CEO of ABF ALISON WYMAN said: “ The world today is a tough place as the cost-of-living crisis continues. We are a charity with an amazing history, but we are absolutely focused on how to keep helping actors and stage managers in 2024 and beyond. 

“We are developing a clear strategy of how to do this in a world that is so different from when we were founded over 140 years ago – and even ten years ago. Along with the new board, I believe we can continue to build on and improve on the help we provide and myself, and my team are very energised to do just that.”