Mr James Newman

James Newman was the founding Chairman of the Sheffield City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), retiring after five and a half years at the end of 2015. He continues to chair the Region’s European Funds Committee and serves on the National European Growth Board.

He is currently Chairman of Finance Yorkshire, Venturefest Yorkshire and Fishing Republic plc, the largest fishing tackle retailer in the UK. His non-executive career spans fourteen years in which time he has been Chairman or non-executive Director of a number plcs, including Scott Wilson, Dignity, R & R Foods and Waste Recycling Group.

He served for eight years as a Governor and Deputy Chairman of Sheffield Hallam University and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in 2012 for services to business, enterprise and education in Yorkshire. He remains a member of the University’s Business School Advisory Board and is on the Court at the University of York. He is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and a Fellow of the Association of Corporate Treasurers.

He completed a highly successful year as Master Cutler of the Company of Cutlers in Hallamshire in 2009/10. He is a Freeman of the City of London and a member of the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers.

Much of his full time career was spent as Group Finance Director of a number of FTSE plcs, in a number of different manufacturing and service industries, including Kelda Group plc, the holding company for Yorkshire Water, where he was also Deputy CEO, Watmoughs and BRIDON.

He is also Chairman of the Trustees of a major national charity, recently formed to consolidate the activities of four existing large charities, which provides a wide range of individual and family support as well as major research grants. He recently became Chairman of the South Yorkshire Community Foundation, one of the largest charities in Yorkshire and a non- Executive Director of the Key Fund, one of the UK's largest social enterprise investors.

Married to Lesley, he has three sons and five grandsons

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