The long-standing Chief Executive of the charity behind Brunel’s SS Great Britain and the Brunel Institute is to step down.
Dr Matthew Tanner MBE will leave the SS Great Britain Trust at the end of this month after 23 years in the role, having first been appointed in 2000.
In a statement Tanner said it was “time to take on some new challenges.”
In 2019 Tanner was appointed President of the International Congress of Maritime Museums.
Tanner has previously served as Chairman and Vice Chairman of the Association of Independent Museums, and is currently its Hon Vice President.
In a statement, the Trust said Tanner had made a “significant contribution” to the “growth, operation, development and transformation of the SS Great Britain Trust” and “ wishes him every success for the future.”
Tanner said: “It has been my great privilege to work for the SS Great Britain Trust and with outstanding staff and volunteer teams to achieve such extraordinary things together, inspiring and changing the lives of young people and preserving Brunel’s masterpiece – the magnificent SS Great Britain.
“I am proud to have played a part in the ship’s history.
“I know the great ship and the two historic dockyards are in the good care of the trustees and a first-rate staff group, embraced and treasured by the people of Bristol, and many more people can and will be inspired by her and all that the Trust does in the future. I’ve always believed that we can all make a difference, and change the world a little bit at a time. So we have.”
The Trustees have asked Angela Spreadbury, Director of Finance & Resources and Phil Smith, Commercial & Operations Director to jointly lead and manage the organisation until a new CEO is appointed.
