Chwarae Teg, the charity whose work leads the drive towards a gender equal Wales, has welcomed five new members to its Board of trustees.

The non-executive directors bring a further wealth of cross-sector knowledge and diverse experience to the table, having formally joined the Board in September.

Chwarae Teg is committed to promoting equality, valuing diversity and working inclusively as an employer and across the services it provides. The new appointments will ensure the Board is reflective of the wide range of women, businesses and partners it supports and collaborates with.

The five new non-executive directors are:   

Stewart Owadally – a Community Organiser and Media Officer at the Welsh Parliament, Stewart has worked in Welsh politics in a party and cross-party environment. He has organised campaigns with young parents to tackle payday lending, young Black and Asian people on community safety, and young Muslims combating extremism. Stewart ran the Stronger In campaign in Wales, for a Remain vote in the 2016 referendum. He has since worked in Welsh Labour politics – working on elections and running programmes to identify and train candidates with a focus on improving the gender balance and overall diversity of Welsh Labour candidates. He sat on the party’s Diversity and Inclusion Board for two years and currently works for a Welsh Labour MS in the Senedd and a Welsh Labour MP in Westminster.

Matt Davies – Chief People Officer for FinTech company, Target Group – A Tech Mahindra Company. Matt is hugely passionate about driving positive workforces that are inclusive and perform successfully; Happy People drive successful organisations. Having grown up gay in Merthyr Tydfil he is motivated to drive inclusion for all, particularly when it comes to intersectionality – helping break multiple glass ceilings from gender, LGBT+ status, those from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, generational diversity and also multi-culturalism.

Georgina Voogd – having qualified as an employment solicitor in 2015 Georgina is now Diversity & Inclusion Engagement Manager, Eversheds Sutherland – responsible for all D&I engagement with and for clients. Georgina originally joined the Board of Chwarae Teg in November 2021 through her participation in the organisation’s Step to Non-Exec programme, becoming a full Board member in 2022.

Carol Adams – has extensive experience of the third sector both in the UK and overseas, including work on projects in the fields of financial exclusion, rural development, poverty, equalities and service delivery. Carol manages RCMA Social Enterprise – a network of Farmers’ Markets in Cardiff, is the Africa Portfolio Lead for the Sub-Saharan Advisory Panel, founder of Food! Sustainable Livelihoods, Health and Communities, and an Honorary Principal Lecturer with Cardiff Metropolitan University.

Kathryn Llewellyn – has been working in global development for 20 years, most recently as CEO for United Purpose. In her 20s Kathryn actively campaigned for human rights in South Africa, Eswati and Zimbabwe and her previous roles include Executive Director of The GREAT Initiative – a gender rights charity, CEO of Pump Aid, managing ‘Live Below the Line’ for the Global Poverty Project and working as International Development Director for The One Foundation. She is also a Board Advisor to the Waitrose Foundation.

Sharon Williams, Chair of the Board, Chwarae Teg, said:

“In my role as Chair a key priority of mine is supporting the organisation to become the best version of itself when it comes to our focus on equality, diversity and inclusion. In order for us to truly have the impact on the organisation we are striving for, having the right Board of Directors is vital.

“I’m therefore delighted that our new appointments bring a range of substantive strengths to the Board, ensuring we have a collective powerhouse for our future.”

Cerys Furlong, Chief Executive, Chwarae Teg, said:

“In Chwarae Teg’s 30th anniversary year, it is a privilege to be able to announce new Board members. It is an important time for us as an organisation as we work harder than ever to embed a greater focus on intersectional equality, diversity and inclusion.

“We are delighted that our new Trustees bring their wealth of experience, passion and talent to our organisation. Together we are well placed to ensure that even more women are visible, influential and that they and their employers can reap the rewards of gender equal, inclusive and diverse workforces.”