Published on: 30 June 2023
Following the retirement of Clive Pouncey, National Coastwatch announced that the Board of Trustees has unanimously elected Stephen Hand as its new Chair with immediate effect.
Stephen said “I feel enormously privileged to have been elected to lead this fantastic organisation. I look forward, as Chair, to being able to support our station and national volunteer teams in keeping eyes along the coast, helping people stay safe along the coast and pushing on with the goals we set in our business plan published last year.”
Stephen began a career in IT management in 1975 in the transport industry, followed by investment banking, insurance and legal services. From 2000 to 2011 he led a global IT function as Group IT Director at the Lloyd’s Register Group. Following retirement, he qualified as a commercial arbitrator and worked in contractual dispute resolution. He is a former Member of the Board of Governors of Middlesex University and a former local Councillor and Council Chair. He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society, a Chartered IT Professional, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators.
He joined NCI in 2016 at Shoreham station as a watchkeeper, was elected Station Manager in 2018 and has been a member of the Board of Trustees since 2020.
Until recently, he enjoyed crewing other people’s yachts particularly in the Solent and also in the South China sea and now in his spare time plays golf as often as possible, is a keen cricket follower and, because someone has to be, a supporter of Queens Park Rangers Football Club.
NCI Chief Executive David Crozier said,
“Clive Pouncey, who has just retired from NCI, enjoyed eight years service and five of those were as a Trustee. He served his final two years as NCI Chair.
“Clive’s energy and leadership enabled us to reach the exciting launch pad to the future upon which we now stand. On behalf of all your NCI colleagues, thank you very much, Clive.
“To Stephen Hand, our new Chair, I say welcome and ignite those rocket engines: we are ready.”