Sir Stephen Bubb to step down as Acevo chief executive

Sir Stephen Bubb is stepping down as the chief executive of Acevo, to lead an initiative aimed at securing strong governance and leadership across the charity sector.

Bubb will head the Charity Futures Programme, which will sit within Acevo and has been made possible by a philanthropic gift. The donors have not been named, and the association announced their “commitment is to civic society and not publicity”.

Acevo is seeking a new chief executive. The association’s director of public policy Asheem Singh will take up the role on an interim basis.

Paul Farmer, chair of Acevo, said the CFP’s aim to arrive at lasting solutions demonstrates the pledges in the association’s three-year strategy.

“With his experience and passion for change, Sir Stephen is the ideal person to lead this ambitious enterprise. Having him step down from his post as Acevo’s chief executive after so long means that this is something of the end of an era.”

Farmer welcomed Singh to the new role, as an exciting young advocate for social change.

Singh said it has been a pleasure to work with Bubb, and it will be a privilege to lead the organisation at the beginning of a new era.

“Our members, whether they lead charities, social enterprises, educational organisations, mutuals, social tech hubs or any other part of the rapidly-expanding universe that is the third sector are the driving force behind our work, and we will work tirelessly to support, represent and help them drive social change in their communities,” Singh said.

Charity Futures Programme

Bubb said the CFP came about following an appearance on the BBC's Today Programme after the collapse of Kids Company, where the outgoing Acevo chief executive called for investment in the leadership and governance of the sector.

Philanthropists came forward and discussions resulted in a £50,000 gift being provided to establish whether the leadership programme was worth pursuing. A £400,000 gift was subsequently offered to fund the CFP over two years.

The initiative will begin with a process of research, to inform the detailed scope and focus of the programme.

“The reality is that this is a massive area of activity in a very big sector, so we’re not going to be able to do everything,” Bubb said. “It’s a question of gathering information and deciding what the priorities are.”

Bubb said the donor has placed no particular conditions on the grant, and it is an “open and generous arrangement”. The funding arrangement could be a good demonstration of an effective alternative to the common practice of making grant applications difficult and imposing prescriptive conditions, he added.

“This is a model of how it could be and indeed how to get the sort of innovation that you need in something like this.”

A researcher will support the work, which is to deliver proposals in two years’ time.

“At the end of this process I’m hoping, particularly in year two, to be coming up with proposals and then looking for the funders who will back it,” Bubb said. “The key thing is that there’s no preconceived notion of what I’m going to come up with. I think it’s very open to what works.”