Introduction
The Crown Estate is driving the transformation of their business so that they continue to be at the forefront of business innovation, customer-focus and the deployment
of new technologies in a rapidly changing world.
With an asset value of £15.6 billion across a diverse and nationally important portfolio, alongside ambitious plans for growth and development in the future, the role of Board Commissioner and Chair of Audit Committee is a key position for the oversight and enablement of those plans.
The Crown Estate’s newly formed leadership team is managing the asset base to achieve or exceed market benchmark returns in a sustainable way, while at the same time preserving the heritage nature of many of them. They are grasping the opportunity to be a leader in supporting the UK towards a net zero carbon future and are helping to create modern communities and this Board Commissioner appointment is an exciting opportunity to contribute to and help influence the realisation of our goals for the development of the business across all its portfolios.
The Crown Estate would like to identify a suitably qualified and exceptional individual with extensive experience in financial oversight and controls assurance in a diversified business with comparable scale and complexity to The Crown Estate.
Additional Information
The remuneration for a Board Commissioner is £20,000 plus an additional £5,000 for the Chair of the Audit Committee position.
This is a Crown Appointment. The Prime Minister recommends the appointable candidate to Her Majesty, The Queen.
For further information about The Crown Estate please visit www.thecrownestate.co.uk
Introduction from the Chair
Welcome from Robin Budenberg
Thank for you for your interest in a Non-Executive Board Commissioner position at The Crown Estate. Dating back more than 260 years, we are a unique business with a diverse portfolio valued at over £15.6 billion. You can learn more about our role as active owners and managers of land and seabed, around England, Wales and Northern Ireland by reading the Candidate pack enclosed with this advert.
The Crown Estate operates with a unique constitution, managing assets on behalf of the Crown, under an independent commercial mandate with accountability to the Treasury.
In London, we are one of the West End’s largest property owners with our real estate portfolio extending to 10 million sq ft across the workplace, retail, dining, leisure and residential sectors. Regionally, we have a broad range of assets including retail and leisure destinations, as well as industrial and business parks. We also have a significant holding of mixed-use and strategic land opportunities.
As the Manager of the seabed around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, we play a key role in enabling the UK’s offshore wind industry and sustainable development of the seabed.
In order to support the long term growth objectives of our business we are looking for an exceptional individual with extensive finance and controls leadership experience to join our Board and become Chair of our Audit Committee.
If you have the skills and experience we are looking for, and are motivated to help The Crown Estate Board and leadership team to continue to develop and grow our business for the benefit of future generations, then I look forward to hearing from you and wish you every success with your application.
Appointment description
The power and duties of the Board are prescribed in the Crown Estate Act 1961 which sets out the overall responsibility of the Board as maintaining and enhancing the value of The Crown Estate and the return obtained from it whilst having due regard to the requirements of good management.
The Board delegates day-to-day responsibility for the management of the estate to the Chief Executive but retains responsibility for:
- Agreeing objectives, policies and strategies, and monitoring the performance of the executive management.
- Agreeing and setting the overall strategic direction of the business for implementation through the Group Leadership Team.
- Keeping under review the general progress and long-term development of The Crown Estate in the light of the political, economic and social environments in which it operates.
- Controlling and monitoring the financial state and performance of The Crown Estate (including investment and financial plans), approving the objectives of The Crown Estate and its corporate plan.
- Approving major expenditure and transactions including, for example, acquisitions, disposals and joint ventures.
- Ensuring that The Crown Estate pursues sound and proper policies in relation to:
- Risk management
- Health and safety
- Internal and external audit
- Internal control
- Investment strategy
- Information systems
- Sustainability
- Public relations and communications
- Accounting
- Human resources
- Corporate governance
- Delegating clear responsibility and authority to the Chair, Executive Committees, the Chief Executive, Board members or groups of Board members, Directors, Heads of Department and others.
- Giving approval or support, as appropriate, to the most senior appointments/dismissals and ensuring that adequate career development, succession and remuneration arrangements exist.
The Board has a formal schedule of matters reserved for its decision which include:
- Approving the annual report and accounts.
- Approving the annual budget and strategic plan.
- Agreeing key capital expenditure or disposals.
- Agreeing Corporate, Investment, Finance and Operations strategies.
- Granting or varying authority levels for Board Committees and the Chief Executive.
Certain matters are delegated under agreed terms of reference to committees of the Board. These include: Audit, Remuneration, and Nominations Committees.
Other issues are delegated to the Group Leadership Team, Management Committees and the CEO.
Organisation description
Dating back more than 260 years, The Crown Estate is a unique business with a diverse portfolio that stretches across the country.
It includes some of London’s best places to work, shop and experience, regional retail and leisure destinations, and a substantial rural portfolio.
We manage the seabed and half the foreshore around England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and play a fundamental role in the sustainable development of this national asset, including the UK’s world-leading offshore wind sector.
We are also custodians of the Windsor Estate, including the world‑renowned Windsor Great Park.
Established by an Act of Parliament, we are tasked with generating profit for the Treasury for the benefit of the nation’s finances. This has totalled £3bn over the last ten years.
Board composition
- Robin Budenberg CBE - Chairman, Independent Non-Executive Board Member and First Commissioner
- Dan Labbad – Chief Executive Officer and Second Commissioner
- James Darkins - Independent Non-Executive Board Member
- Juliet Davenport OBE - Independent Non-Executive Board Member
- Paula Hay-Plumb - Independent Non-Executive Board Member
- Dame Karen Jones CBE - Independent Non-Executive Board Member and Senior Independent Board Member.
We have been recruiting for two further Board Commissioners to join our board and these appointments will be announced on our website.
- Sara Wood - Board Councillor
Regulation of appointment
This post is regulated by the Commissioner for Public Appointments. For more information, please refer to the
Commissioner’s website