Who are the new Chesterfield FC board members?

Mike Goodwin, who is the community trust chairman, will take on the same role on the new football club board and he will be joined by vice-chairmen Dave Simmonds and Martin Thacker as well as Jane Cooper, Dr Paul Stankard and Terry Ward.

All six new board members are also directors and trustees of the community trust.

Peter Whiteley, the trust’s governance officer, will be the new company secretary.

The club released the following information about each new board member...

Mike Goodwin (chairman)

“Mike enjoyed a long and distinguished career in local government, spanning almost 40 years, before retiring in 2011 as chief executive of North East Derbyshire District Council. Mike has been a qualified accountant for over 30 years and is proud to use the letters CIPFA in relation to his professional body. Mike has also been a CIPFA examiner as well as a guest lecturer at Nottingham Trent University. Other positions that Mike has held include chairman of the board of governors at Hasland Community School and chairman/president of Chesterfield Cricket Club. He joined the board of trustees in 2015.”

Dave Simmonds (co-vice chairman)

“Dave started his working life in the Valuation Office of the Inland Revenue before leaving to train as a PE teacher. His teaching career started in 1980 as a sports lecturer at Chesterfield College. A qualified FA coach, Dave was vice-chairman of Derbyshire Schools Football Association for many years and for a time was manager of the under-19 team. He set up the Chesterfield FC academy, run by the college on behalf of the club, which once established after a few years was passed on to the club. Dave progressed to the position of assistant principal at the college before retiring in 2016 after 36 years’ service. He has been a Chesterfield FC supporter for over 60 years. Dave was appointed a trustee in 2015.”

Martin Thacker (co-vice chairman)

“Martin is Chesterfield born and bred. He is proud of his Chesterfield FC connections that include being related to Frank Thacker, a former player and assistant manager. Martin taught locally for almost 30 years and was headteacher in two schools. He was county president of the National Association of Headteachers and regional president for the East Midlands. He has been involved in local Scouting for over 30 years and president of the Staveley branch of the Royal British Legion. Martin is also president of the following organisations: Staveley Armed Forces Veterans’ Association, the Chesterfield & North Derbyshire branch of the RSPCA, Chesterfield Male Voice Choir and Ireland Colliery Brass Band. He continues to work tirelessly with the Chesterfield deaf community and is Chesterfield Champion for the Deaf. Martin served as an elected member of Chesterfield Borough Council and is a councillor on North East Derbyshire District Council. He has been a trustee since 2016.”

Jane Cooper

“Jane has a background in training, previously working for Boots the Chemists on strategic projects and business development. Her experience in the charity sector includes being co-founder of Accessible Derbyshire and a director of Access for All UK. Jane has been a Changing Places campaigner and trainer since 2003 and lectured on inclusive tourism at Sheffield Hallam University since 2015. She became a trustee in 2018.”

Dr Paul Stankard

“Paul is a consultant forensic psychiatrist who was appointed a trustee in 2019.”

Terry Ward

“After qualifying as an architect, Terry worked for several architectural consultancy practices and later for large-scale multi-disciplinary companies. In 1997, he formed his own architectural and town planning practice, Ward McHugh Associates, which he managed successfully for nearly 18 years. He sold the practice to his staff in 2014 and became semi-retired. He was the project director/architect for a number of sporting projects, including the phased redevelopment of Twickenham Stadium and the design of a new stadium for Chesterfield FC following the club’s move from Saltergate. Other local projects Terry has been involved in include new facilities at Chesterfield Royal Hospital and Ashgate Hospicecare. He became a trustee in 2019.”