New directors to boost enterprise partnership

Clare Fenton, from Herefordshire, and Alex Green, from Shropshire, were formally appointed at the LEP board meeting on September 27, when Paul Kalinauckas was also re-appointed to the board for a two-year term as access to finance champion.

The Marches Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) is working with public and private sector partners to promote investment in the Herefordshire, Shropshire and Telford & Wrekin area, including driving projects which deliver towards net zero targets.

Mandy Thorn MBE DL, chair of the Marches LEP, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Clare and Alex to the board and look forward to working with them to deliver our priorities to benefit the businesses of the Marches area.

“Both Clare and Alex bring extensive business experience to the board and have specific skills which can only strengthen the team as we move forward. We are very lucky to have them on board.”

Clare has been involved in the construction industry for more than 20 years and is the current chair of the Metal Cladding and Roofing Manufacturers Association.

She has been an integral member of the Construction Innovation Hub’s (CIH) Platform Programme since its start, sits on the strategy board and is a key member of the envelope delivery team and the digital proof of concept team. She has recently become one of the first trained facilitators of the CIH Value Toolkit, a government-backed initiative designed to change the way the construction industry thinks about and measures value in projects.

This year Clare was awarded the European Women in Construction and Engineering Lifetime in Construction award, which recognised her efforts to improve standards, her innovations, collaborations and years of mentoring, training and leadership.

Alex is a founder and director of Radfield Home Care, a company that provides care for people living in their own homes in Shrewsbury. Through Radfield Home Care Franchising, care is now being delivered across the country through a network of more than 25 Radfield Home Care offices.

Before starting Radfield, Alex worked in community media and ran Ofcom pilot projects to bring licensed community radio broadcasting to the UK. He has also held roles in financial services, has worked as an advisor to technology brands focusing on blockchain technology and, as a passionate believer in the importance of community, still works as a director of Reprezent, a London-based social enterprise providing broadcasting services, media training and education for young people.