During her five years with The Heritage Fund Ros has led a number of major transformation programmes, including a new Strategic Funding Framework, organisational and governance structure and brand, as well as work on values and culture.

During the past five years I have been so proud to be have been part of all the amazing achievements we have made in supporting our heritages and communities.

Ros Kerslake, Chief Executive of The Heritage Fund

She has led our response to the pandemic, including £50million of National Lottery funding to support heritage, launched within weeks of the start of the crisis. She then led The Heritage Fund in moving rapidly to distribute emergency funding on behalf of two Government departments for the first time in its history. Her contribution to heritage was recognised with the award of a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours last year.

Ros says: “When I became Chief Executive I was told that this is the best job in heritage and that is definitely true. I believe in the power of heritage to change people’s lives, and during the past five years I have been so proud to be have been part of all the amazing achievements we have made in supporting our heritages and communities.

“It will be a wrench to leave, but I feel that having delivered the strategy I set out when I joined, this is the right time for someone else to take The Heritage Fund forward to the next stage. It has been in my thinking for some time that once our new Chair was appointed and settled in to their role it was a good time to move on. I know that I leave The Heritage Fund in great shape under Simon’s leadership, and that it will go from strength to strength.”

Ros will continue in her role as Chief Executive until the end of this year and it is very much “business as usual” until then. She is keen to have more time to develop other interests and plans to develop a portfolio career. Recruitment of a new Chief Executive will be underway shortly.

I am sure I speak on behalf of us all in saying that Ros has been an inspirational and innovative Chief Executive.

Dr Simon Thurley CBE, Chair of Trustees

Dr Simon Thurley CBE, who joined The Heritage Fund earlier this year as Chair of Trustees, said: “I am sure I speak on behalf of us all in saying that Ros has been an inspirational and innovative Chief Executive, never more so than in the way she led The Heritage Fund’s response to the crisis last year. What she has achieved, particularly in turning around the organisation to deliver emergency funding to the sector, has been outstanding and there are many across the industry who are hugely grateful to her.”