Welsh Rugby Union: Governing body completes revamped board
- Published
Claire Donovan played 75 international for Wales and joined the WRU council in 2021 as an elected national representative
The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) has confirmed it has completed its revamped 12-strong board.
Welsh rugby's governing body has announced four elected members with former Wales international Claire Donovan joined by John Manders, Colin Wilks and Chris Jones.
The WRU has reached its diversity target of five women on the board.
Donovan will join new chief executive Abi Tierney, Alison Thorne, Jennifer Mathias and Amanda Bennett.
The newly-elected quartet join Tierney, who starts in January, WRU chair Richard Collier-Keywood, PRB chair Malcolm Wall and recently announced independent non-executive directors (iNEDs), Thorne, Mathias, Jamie Roberts, Bennett and Andrew Williams.
Only Wall, Wilks and Jones survive from the 12 people who were on the WRU board at the beginning of 2023.
Board revamp
The new board will be in place for 2024 with the WRU's published gender diversity ambitions realised and more professional expertise provided.
The WRU vowed to modernise its board following a series of controversies. This new policy was implemented at an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) following a BBC Wales investigates programme in January 2023 which raised questions of sexism and misogyny among other failures within the organisation.
An independent review last month later found aspects of the WRU's culture were sexist, misogynistic, racist and homophobic and not properly challenged.
The WRU environment also had elements of bullying and discrimination, and was described as toxic by some employees.
The governance was found to have not been been fit for purpose while the board was described as dysfunctional, ill-equipped and unable to address the serious institutional and culture problems it faced.
The wholesale changes instigated by the WRU has seen the number of independent directors rising from three to six with elected board members from clubs dropping from eight to four.
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Collier-Keywood, who was brought in as the WRU's first independent chair in July and replaced former Wales captain Ieuan Evans, is hugely enthusiastic about the final make-up of the board.
"I'm delighted to welcome Claire, John, Colin and Chris to the team," he said.
"We now have a board that has a great balance of skills and experience across all different aspects of our rugby game, communities, public sector and business and which is ready to support Welsh rugby across Wales.
"We're pleased to have delivered on our promise to ensure a 40% gender balance and now with the board fully assembled, I have no doubt it meets the highest of standards.
"We have a talented group of diverse individuals and we are united in our purpose of ensuring that Welsh rugby flourishes at all levels of the game on and off the pitch.
"We now have in place the diversity of talent and skillset required to ensure our place in the elite women's and men's game and we are determined to continue to grow and support all sections of our community game."
Community roles
Elections held last week have revealed the four members elected by the club and community game in Wales to sit alongside the eight appointed directors already confirmed.
Former Risca chairman Wilks and founder member of Newcastle Emlyn Jones were elected as the district council members to sit on the board.
Nationally appointed director Manders was re-elected as Community Game Board (CGB) chair for a second term.
National council member Donovan was elected unopposed and becomes only the second woman to be elected onto the board rather than appointed to it.
Donovan follows in the footsteps of Liza Burgess who was a director in 2019 and became vice-chair in 2020, before standing down to take on a professional role within the WRU's performance department in 2021.
"I relish the opportunity to join the board at a pivotal time for Welsh rugby," said Donovan.
"We must be grateful to those board members who have cleared the way ahead for our game and helped introduce governance modernisation that will pay dividends long into the future.
"If you love Welsh rugby and want to see it thrive and flourish, then these are exciting times to be a member of the team on the WRU board.
"With positive change being introduced at a great pace throughout the game it will be our responsibility to foster and monitor this evolution for the betterment of our game."