SCIE media releases 2006

SCIE's Chief Executive to stand down in March 2007

24 November 2006

Bill Kilgallon has announced that he will leave his position as Chief Executive of SCIE at the end of March 2007.

Mr Kilgallon (60) has been in the post since January 2003. He has led SCIE as it has developed an evidence base for good practice in social care and produced resources that support social care workers and users of services.

Announcing his retirement from post, Bill Kilgallon said:

"It has been a privilege to lead SCIE through its first years of development. The organisation is now strong, has good relationships with its key funders and has earned a good reputation for the quality of its work. I am sure that SCIE will continue to develop in this way and will keep its unique status as a reliable source of knowledge for the whole social care sector.

"I have always intended to retire from full-time work around this time. My wife and I have also recently taken on extra commitments as long-term foster carers in Leeds."

Chair of SCIE, Allan Bowman said:

"SCIE would like to thank Bill for all his hard work in the past four years. His dedication and passion for improving outcomes for users of services is widely recognised, as are his achievements in promoting the values of SCIE to service providers and policy makers.

"Bill's background and approach has supported SCIE to work in an inclusive and accessible way. He really understands the implications of good practice and has ensured that SCIE involves users of services in all of our work. Social care needs more leaders like Bill, and we hope that he will continue to contribute to the sector. He will be missed at SCIE and we will be seeking a successor with similar values, vision and qualities."

Mr Kilgallon will continue to pledge his full commitment to SCIE until March 2007. The position of Chief Executive for SCIE will be advertised in the new year.

Media contact

Annie Goss | Communications Officer (Media) | T: 020 7089 7117 | M: 07739 458 192
Email: annie.goss@scie.org.uk

Notes to editors

Bill Kilgallon joined SCIE in January 2003. Prior to that he was Chief Executive of St Anne's Shelter & Housing Action, an organisation he founded in 1971, which works with single homeless people, people with learning disabilities, people with mental health problems and people with problems related to alcohol and drug abuse across Yorkshire and the North East. He was Chair of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, the largest NHS Trust in the country from 1998-2002 and Chair of the Leeds Community & Mental Health Services NHS Trust from 1992-1998. Bill served as a member of Leeds City Council from 1979-1992 where he chaired the Social Services, Housing and Environment committees. Bill has led independent inquiries and has also served on the management boards of a wide range of organisations at local, regional and national level.