Dive into the stories of Sport England's Board and Executive Leadership Team, who bring a wealth of experience from across the sport and physical activity sector.
Sport England’s Board and Executive Leadership Team are the driving force behind the organization’s mission to transform lives through sport and physical activity. These leaders bring a wealth of experience from across the entire sport and physical activity sector, providing diverse viewpoints that guide strategic direction and major funding decisions.
The Board, appointed by the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, consists of a Chair, a Vice Chair, and up to 10 other members. Each member brings a unique perspective, ensuring that Sport England’s initiatives are innovative, inclusive, and impactful.
Board Members: A Wealth of Experience
The Board members of Sport England are a testament to the organization’s commitment to excellence and diversity. Each member has a distinguished background in their respective fields, contributing to the collective expertise that drives Sport England’s success.
Chris Boardman: Championing Cycling and Walking
Chris Boardman the Chair of Sport England, is an Olympic champion, world record holder, and three-time Tour de France stage winner. His appointment as Greater Manchester’s first ever Cycling and Walking Commissioner in July 2017 marked the beginning of a transformative journey. Chris’s report, Made to Move published in December 2017, outlined a 15-step plan to revolutionize how people get around in the city region. This plan has evolved into a £1.5 billion initiative to create a world-class cycling and walking network, with the first 100 miles of high-quality routes already in development.
In May 2021, Chris took on an expanded role as Greater Manchester’s first ever Transport Commissioner, tasked with accelerating the delivery of the Bee Network—a fully integrated, city region-wide transport system. His advocacy for cycling and walking has made him one of the UK’s most prominent voices in these areas. Chris also launched his own range of bikes, BOARDMAN Bikes, in 2007 and served as head of research and development for the Great Britain Cycling Team from 2004 to 2012. He was appointed Chair of Sport England in July 2021.
Michelle Cracknell: Financial Expertise and Passion for Physical Activity
Michelle Cracknell brings a wealth of financial expertise to the Board. She served as the chief executive and accounting officer of The Pensions Advisory Service from October 2013 to December 2018. Prior to that, she held director roles in advice firms, providers, and insurance companies. A qualified actuary, Michelle holds non-executive positions at Fidelity International Holdings, Just Group Plc, Lloyds Banking Group Pension Trustees Ltd, and PensionBee Group Plc.
Michelle’s passion for helping people make the most of their money extends to her belief in the parallels between motivating people to budget and encouraging them to participate in physical activity. She joined the Board on a three-year term in 2023 and was reappointed for a second term in 2026.
Natalie Daniels: Building Sustainable and Inclusive Communities
Natalie Daniels has dedicated her career to building sustainable and inclusive communities. As an urbanist, she has worked on major programmes in the UK, USA, Africa, and Asia, earning multiple awards for her contributions. Currently a senior public servant in regional government, Natalie leads a team committed to improving the lives of Londoners through housing delivery, specialist and supported housing services, and housing policy.
Natalie’s experience as a board member for charities working across housing, homelessness, and international development has given her a deep understanding of the benefits of exercise for individuals and communities. She joined the Board in August 2023 for a three-year term.
Jason Fergus: Driving Physical Activity Levels
Jason Fergus has over 20 years of experience in the sport and physical activity sector. As the chair of Sport England’s Investment Committee, he oversees the governance and oversight of funding decisions to align with the organization’s strategic priorities. Jason is also the director of Active Essex, one of the largest Active Partnerships in England, where he leads a team delivering system partner responsibilities and six Place Partnerships.
Jason led the delivery of the Essex local delivery pilot (LDP) between 2018 and 2025, part of a ground-breaking £100m programme to tackle long-term levels of physical inactivity in deprived areas. Active Essex delivers the Government Holiday and Activity Food (HAF) programme, engaging over 30,000 disadvantaged children and families every year. Jason’s strategic thinking and ethical leadership have made him a key figure in driving up physical activity levels. He was reappointed for a second term in 2026.
Tom Gribbin: Innovative Partnerships and Campaigns
Tom Gribbin is an entrepreneurial leader known for building innovative partnerships and high-profile ventures across business, sport, and government. With over 20 years of experience in strategy, creative development, commercial, public relations, and behaviour change, Tom has made significant contributions to the sport and physical activity sector.
He is the founder of Planet League, a platform that mobilises sports fans to live greener, and has partnered with Premier League, NFL, NBA, and NHL teams. Tom is also one of the founders of the annual Green Football Weekend campaign and has worked with many professional athletes to drive leadership in sustainability and sport. He was appointed in September 2025 for a three-year term.
Vaughan Lindsay: Impact Investing and Climate Adaptation
Vaughan Lindsay is a leading professional in profit with purpose businesses and impact investing, with deep sector knowledge of carbon markets and climate adaptation. As the former CEO at Climate Impact Partners, Vaughan has over 20 years of experience in the charity sector and is currently the chair of New Philanthropy Capital and the Oversight Trust (dormant assets for public good).
Vaughan is also a keen triathlete and represents GB (age group) in the world championships. He was appointed in September 2025 for a three-year term.
Sarah Massey: Sports Leadership and Global Event Strategy
Sarah Massey is an accomplished leader in the world of sport, with over three decades of experience in sports leadership, global event strategy, and planning. As the Director of Sport for the British Olympic Association (BOA), Sarah oversees Team GB’s Sport and Athlete Services teams, as well as the operational teams that optimise preparation and performance strategies for Olympic events.
Prior to joining the BOA, Sarah was the Managing Director for the Women’s Rugby World Cup England 2025. Her career spans various roles across Olympic and Commonwealth Games, as well as cricket and hockey World Cups. Sarah firmly believes in the positive impact that sports can have on individuals and communities and actively supports work to reduce the dropout rates of teenage girls. She was appointed in September 2025 for a three-year term.
Elena Narozanski: Grassroots Sport Advocate
Elena Narozanski has served as an adviser to the Education Secretary, Home Secretary, Mayor of London, and two Prime Ministers. Her main policy interests are sport, education, and culture. Elena works for HENI, an art technology company, and sits on the Sport Honours Committee and the Board of the Football Foundation.
An evangelist for the value of grassroots sport, Elena has been involved in setting up, running, and volunteering at several clubs across different sports. She is a qualified boxing coach and weightlifting technical official, having boxed for England and played cricket and football at a high level.
Executive Leadership Team: Implementing the Strategy
The Executive Leadership Team is responsible for the day-to-day implementation of Sport England’s strategy and advocating for sport and physical activity. The team comprises the Chief Executive, Simon Hayes, and his team of Executive Directors. In, changes to the structure of this team were announced, and the vacancies have since been filled.
Simon Hayes: Chief Executive with a Passion for Sport
Simon Hayes brings a wealth of senior experience in organisational leadership to Sport England. As the former chief executive of HM Land Registry, Simon successfully led the organisation through the unprecedented challenge of Covid-19 and rebuilt capacity and capability after many years of under-investment. He accelerated HM Land Registry’s transformation into a more modern, digital, and customer-focused organisation.
Simon joined the Home Office in 1997 and held several positions across police, criminal justice, and immigration policy before becoming chief of staff for the UK Border Agency (UKBA) in 2005. He later became UKBA’s first regional director for the Americas, based in Washington DC. Simon returned to the UK in 2012 and became UK Visas and Immigration’s international director and later director of visas and citizenship. He also set up the EU Settlement Scheme for European citizens residing in the UK, which was successfully launched in 2019.
Simon is a passionate sports fan and an ardent supporter of Nottingham Forest. He still plays five-a-side football every week and has also taken up padel, ensuring his three school-age children have similar opportunities to play sport and keep active.
Angela Balakrishnan: Strategic Communication Leader
Angela Balakrishnan is a strategic communication and engagement leader with 20 years of experience in communication and journalism. She believes in the power of great comms to build trust, shape policy, and influence behaviour. Angela is Vice-President of Women in PR and has served on the board of the Asian Communications Network to improve diversity and equity across the PR and Comms industry.
For the last five years, Angela has led the award-winning communications and public affairs directorate at the Information Commissioner’s Office – the UK’s data protection regulator. She previously spent nine years in government communication, working on international affairs and business issues, including the Ebola crisis and the Syria conflict. Before that, she worked at one of the UK’s biggest charities, Cancer Research UK.
Angela specialises in using insight-driven integrated communications that bring together engaging storytelling, creative content, and partnerships to connect complex issues with different audiences and deliver social change. She began her career as a journalist, working at the Guardian and writing for music magazines. During this time, she put on monthly club nights with live bands in Camden. Angela still lives for live music and enjoys transferring her joy for festivals in fields and fancy dress to her two young sons.
Lisa Dodd-Mayne: Partnerships and Place
Lisa Dodd-Mayne serves as the Executive Director for Partnerships and Place, responsible for providing strategic leadership and direction for how Sport England engages in and delivers a local and community-based approach to Uniting the Movement, including the expansion of the places in which they invest.
Nick Percy: International Leadership in Media and Strategy
Nick Percy has extensive international leadership experience across media, strategy, and investment. He joins from BBC Studios, where he held a range of senior roles, most recently as President, Global Markets, overseeing distribution activities across Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Australia & New Zealand. Nick began his career at McKinsey & Company, advising clients across sport, media, and government.
He’s also worked at Diageo in its global strategy team and contributed to a major cross-government childcare policy review in the Prime Minister’s Strategy Unit. Nick holds an MBA from INSEAD and has lived and worked in the UK and Australia.
Amy Rice: Leading Complex Transformation Programmes
Amy Rice has over 20 years of executive and non-executive leadership experience across the public, private, and third sectors, with a strong track record of leading complex transformation programmes. She began her career as a prison governor and went on to hold senior roles at the Ministry of Justice, leading major change across policy, commissioning, programme delivery, and people functions.
Amy later founded and led a multi-academy trust of 17 schools in Yorkshire. Prior to her role at Sport England, she worked in the commercial sector delivering people-centred services to local and national government. Amy has also held a number of non-executive roles, including supporting the delivery of the English stages of the Tour de France in 2014 and serving on the Board and Audit Committee of Northumbria University for nine years.
Amy is passionate about improving outcomes for people from disadvantaged backgrounds and enabling communities to thrive.
Phil Smith: Sporting System and Talent Development
Phil Smith serves as the Executive Director for the Sporting System, responsible for several areas of the Sport England business. He has represented Sport England as a Board Director of both the Football Foundation and UK Coaching. Phil’s team manages long-term investments of several hundred million in various sporting bodies, providing advice to achieve results.
The ultimate aims are to grow the number of people regularly engaged in sport, maximise international and domestic sporting success, and help the sport sector become more productive, sustainable, and responsible. Within these aims, Phil leads the organisation’s work in talent development and performance, club and workforce development, volunteering and coaching, equality and diversity, and improved governance. Phil joined Sport England in 2008 from The Football Association, where his professional career started after Euro ‘96 as the General Secretary of the County FA in Manchester.
His football career took him through various roles in the game before becoming The FA’s Head of Policy and Public Affairs, responsible for football industry policy in relation to Government in both the UK and international bodies.
