About BHF
BHF appoints two new trustees
We have appointed Sir John Hood and Dr Annalisa Jenkins as new trustees.
Sir John Hood has spent his career working in the business, higher education and philanthropic sectors. Over the last 11 years he has served as President and CEO of the Robertson Foundation which supports medical science, the environment and public education.
He has also served as Vice-Chancellor for the University of Oxford and the University of Auckland, and currently serves as a director of the Blackstone Group Inc. as well acting as a trustee or member on several trust and advisory boards.
Dr Annalisa Jenkins has worked in the biopharma industry for over 25 years and has overseen programmes that have taken scientific research through clinical development, regulatory approval and into healthcare settings.
Dr Jenkins has held leadership roles at Dimension Therapeutics, Merck Serono and Bristol Myers Squibb. She also holds board or membership roles with a number of public listed and private life sciences companies, including Genomics England, Faster Cures at the Milken Institute, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration and is Chair of The Court at The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine.
The new Trustees will take up their roles on the charity’s governing Board of 14 Trustees over the next few months.
International experience
Dr Doug Gurr, our Chairman, said: “I am very pleased to welcome two such highly qualified and respected figures to our BHF Board who bring with them a wealth of international experience in business, science and academia.
“The BHF has faced a time of unprecedented uncertainty through the pandemic. I know that Sir John and Dr Jenkins will bring their leadership to help guide the charity forward and continue to deliver on our ambitions at this critical time.”
Sir John Hood said: “Heart and circulatory diseases blight the lives of millions of people in the UK and around the world. The BHF is at the forefront of tackling that challenge. The work of their inspiring scientists saves and transforms lives and their successes benefit people across the globe, so it is both humbling and inspiring to be able to serve as a trustee.”
Dr Annalisa Jenkins, who will serve as a BHF medical trustee, said: “It is a privilege to take up this role at the BHF. Over the last six decades, the charity has been an important engine of scientific discovery and a world-leader in cardiovascular research.
"I look forward to making my contribution to further their research agenda and networks to ensure that the charity can fully realise its ambitious programmes for the future.”
The new trustees join as the BHF continues to recover from the most challenging time in its 60-year history. The Covid-19 pandemic forced the charity to cut its investment in new research by around £50m in 2020/21 due to the cancellation of fundraising events, closure of its shops and the suspension of other activities.
Together with other charities, the BHF is calling on the UK Government to support charity funded research as it recovers from the pandemic.