Peter Maple is leaving his post as communications director of
Arthritis Care after seven years to join Leonard Cheshire, the leading
disability care organisation and the UK’s tenth-largest charity in terms
of income.
Maple will take up the post of public affairs director, which has been
vacant since Jeremy Hughes left in August to join the Red Cross.
The public affairs position is a key role in the charity, with a direct
report to director general Bryan Dutton and a seat on the charity’s
board of five directors.
Maple will take responsibility for all aspects of the charity’s press
and PR work. In addition, marketing, fundraising and internal
communications all fall within his brief.
Responsibility for the charity’s three-strong external policy team,
which includes parliamentary and voluntary sector liaison work, will
remain with Dutton, although the team will work alongside Maple. Maple
will oversee a team of 16 and joins in November.
Dutton said Maple’s track record in increasing public awareness at
Arthritis Care was influential in his appointment, since profile-raising
will also be a focus of his work at Leonard Cheshire. He said: ’Until
last year, we were a self-effacing charity letting the work speak for
itself. Now we have come of age, we have realised we can’t go on like
that. We will be looking to Maple to increase our public profile and our
fundraising activity.’
