Four National Council Members appointed to Arts Council England
The Secretary of State has appointed Grace Chan, Jonathan Douglas, Jon Gilchrist and Jo Verrent as National Council Members of Arts Council England
Grace Chan
Grace Chan, an FCA chartered accountant born in Levin, New Zealand, has dedicated her professional career to financial leadership within the charity and performing arts sector.
She currently serves as Chief Operating Officer at the English National Ballet , having joined in 2016. She has held permanent posts at the Royal Opera House, National Theatre, and London Theatre Company, following a role as Finance Director at NESTA.
Grace played a pivotal role in delivering the Mulryan Centre for Dance in East London, a key strategic achievement for the ENB’s operational future. Her background includes ten years at Deloitte as an adviser to growing companies.
She is also a dedicated trustee to various arts organisations, applying her expertise in governance and financial oversight across the sector.
Jonathan Douglas CBE
Since 2007, Jonathan has been the Chief Executive of the National Literacy Trust, a charity that engages over 1.4 million people each year from disadvantaged communities and the justice sector in reading and writing. He has led the creation of 21 place-based literacy approaches across the UK, developed the Libraries for Primaries campaign—which has so far created 2,000 new libraries for children with the support of the publishing sector—and delivered two National Year of Reading campaigns. He has also led the development of the Literacy All-Party Parliamentary Group and the Literacy and Business Council, engaging over 100 businesses, from the Premier League to KPMG, in support of education.
Previously, he was the Head of Policy Development at the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council. He started his career as a Children’s Librarian in Westminster Libraries, later working at the librarians’ association, CILIP. He is the Vice Chair of the period ensemble and music education charity, Gabrieli, and is on the Advisory Board of the Booker Prize.
He has held a number of public appointments, including serving as a Non-Executive Director of the Money Advice Service and undertaking a variety of chairing and advisory roles for the DfE. He received an Honorary Degree from Oxford Brookes University in 2014, is an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, and was awarded a CBE in 2020 for services to Education.
Jon Gilchrist
Jon is the Artistic Director and CEO of Birmingham Hippodrome, one of the West Midlands’ largest cultural organisations. The Hippodrome reaches over one million people a year through on and off-stage programs of work, with a specialisation in new musical theatre development. Prior to this, Jon was the Executive Director of HOME in Manchester, the city’s center for live performances, international contemporary art, and film. He also worked as the Executive Director of the Bush Theatre in West London, where he led their major capital redevelopment and expanded the organisation’s reach as a center of excellence for diverse emerging talent.
Jon previously worked in venues across the Northwest, including The Lowry in Salford, the Octagon Theatre Bolton, and The Dukes in Lancaster. He was Joint President of UK Theatre from 2022 to 2025, the UK’s leading theatre and performing arts membership organisation. His previous Board roles include the HighTide Festival Theatre in Suffolk and The Edge Theatre in Manchester.
Jo Verrent
Jo works in arts and culture at strategic levels with national agencies, embedding the belief that diversity adds texture and turning policy into real action. She is the Director of Unlimited, commissioning disabled artists to challenge and change the cultural sector. Unlimited was part of London 2012’s Cultural Olympiad and is now an independent charity and a National Portfolio Organisation. It works with partners including Arts Council England, Creative Scotland, Arts Council of Wales, and the British Council through five strands: commission, develop, support, connect, and change. Jo leads on change, which includes creating resources such as Cards for Inclusion and the Anti-Exploitation Academy. She is responsible for the impact the organisation has both at home and abroad.
Her arts history includes creating award-winning video installations (with Luke Pell) and Sync (with Sarah Pickthall), a transformational program examining the interplay between disability and leadership in the cultural sector. Jo has won both Cosmopolitan’s Woman of Achievement and a trophy for jam. She sits on the Arts Fundraising and Philanthropy Oversight Committee and is a Clore fellow.
Remuneration and Governance Code
Grace Chan, Jonathan Douglas and Jo Verrent have been appointed for a term of four years, commencing on 1 December 2025 to 30 November 2029. Jon Gilchrist has been appointed for a term of four years, commencing on 15 May 2026 to 14 May 2030.
National Council Members of the Arts Council England Board are not remunerated. These appointments have been made in accordance with the Cabinet Office’s Governance Code on Public Appointments. The appointments process is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. Under the Code, any significant political activity undertaken by an appointee in the last five years must be declared. This is defined as including holding office, public speaking, making a recordable donation, or candidature for election.
Jon Gilchrist was invited to Chair the panel of a Creative UK Fringe Event alongside the Labour Party Conference in 2024. He has not participated in any other political activity.
Grace Chan, Jonathan Douglas and Jo Verrent have declared no political activity.
Notes to Editors
DCMS has around 400 regulated Public Appointment roles across 42 Public Bodies including Arts Council England, Theatres Trust, the National Gallery, UK Sport and the Gambling Commission. We encourage applications from talented individuals from all backgrounds and across the whole of the United Kingdom. To find out more about Public Appointments or to apply visit the HM Government Public Appointments Website.