We are delighted to announce the appointment of Owen Purcell as Chair of our Board of Trustees. Owen will formally take up his role when current Chair Malcolm McCaig stands down in October 2026.

Speaking of Owen’s appointment Kate Terroni, our Chief Executive said:

‘I am delighted that Owen has been appointed as our new Chair. He brings a wealth of knowledge and strategic expertise to the role and a real passion for enabling people we support to shape our direction. I am looking forward to Owen’s support and challenge as we implement our ambitious strategy – to deliver more outstanding support to more people, to be the most coproduced charity in the country and to improve the lives of all disabled people.’

Owen brings over 25 years’ experience across professional services and in Board roles in the private, public and charitable sectors. Since 2019 he has been Chair of the Board of Trustees at AbilityNet, a national charity focused on digital inclusion, supporting individuals with disabilities and older people to access technology.

Owen says:

‘I’m proud to be taking on the role as Chair of United Response this autumn. In my previous roles I have seen just some of barriers disabled people face in daily life so our ambition to support people to live their lives to the full struck me as incredibly powerful. We all want – and deserve – to live a good life.  I look forward to supporting our charity to achieve our big ambitions to improve the lives of all disabled people.’

Owen’s appointment was confirmed at our July Board meeting, where Katie Tait was also appointed as a Trustee. Katie is Chief Executive of Horatio’s Garden, a charity that improves the lives of people with spinal injuries by creating and nurturing gardens in NHS rehabilitation centres. She brings significant expertise in journalism and communications to our Board. We are excited for both Owen and Katie to join our Board at this exciting point as we implement our Big Lives plan.