PRESS RELEASE: Civic Voice announces four new vice-presidents

Civic Voice - the national charity for the civic movement – announced on Saturday 21st October at its AGM in Chester - that Baroness Andrews, Sir Terry Farrell, Laura Sandys and former Chair, Freddie Gick have all been appointed vice-presidents of the charity.

All four appointments have been made to recognise the outstanding contribution to the civic movement by each of them.

  • Baroness Andrews, former chair of English Heritage, is Civic Voice’s representative in the House of Lords and has recently spoken on behalf of the civic movement when the Housing and Planning Bill was debated in the House of Lords.
  • Sir Terry Farrell is founder of the UK’s leading architectural firm, Farrells. In January 2013, Sir Terry was asked by Ed Vaizey, Minister for Culture, Communications and the Creative Industries to undertake a national review of architecture and the built environment. Sir Terry explained the outcomes of the Review at this year’s Civic Voice Sandys’ Lecture and highlighted the need for a strong civic movement to promote quality development. Sir Terry will support the Civic Voice Design Awards.
  • Laura Sandys was formerly the chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Civic Societies and was key in helping set up Civic Voice. Laura is the daughter of Lord Duncan Sandys, who established the Civic Trust in 1957. Each year the Sandys Lecture is held in his name and, fittingly, Laura speaks at each occasion. Laura Sandys will support the civic movement celebrations for 50 years of conservation areas.
  • Freddie Gick is the former chair of Civic Voice after taking office in 2013. Freddie will support the civic movement for the next few year with a focus on fundraising and building support for the civic movement

Civic Voice President, Griff Rhys Jones, expressed his delight at each of the appointments. He said “The appointment of Baroness Andrews, Sir Terry Farrell, Laura Sandys and Freddie Gick in the role of vice-president demonstrates how far Civic Voice has come since we set up six years ago. I have been President for several years and have enjoyed my time visiting civic societies across the country. Each of these new vice-presidents is a great ambassador for communities and each of them has played a huge part in Civic Voice’s story over the past six years. It is only right they have been appointed vice-president and I look forward to working closely with each of them in the forthcoming twelve months.”

Sir Terry Farrell said "I am absolutely delighted to be a Vice President of Civic Voice. As a long-term supporter of Civic Voice’s work, including the Civic Voice Design Awards, playing a role in the promotion of civic pride and community-valued design, is a key principle in our ‘Place is the client’ philosophy."

Notes for Editors
Civic Voice vice-presidents are appointed by the Board of Trustees.

About Civic Voice
Civic Voice is the national charity for the civic movement in England. Our mission is to develop a society where everyone can say “I care about where I live”. We promote civic pride through our network of over 75,000 individual members.

Biographies

  • Elizabeth Kay Andrews, Baroness Andrews, OBE, FSA (born 16 May 1943) is a British Labour politician and life peer. On 27 July 2009, Andrews became the Chair of English Heritage. She was the first woman to head the organisation. 
  • Sir Terry Farrell, CBE, RIBA, FRSA, FCSD, MRTPI (born 12 May 1938) is a British architect and urban designer. In 1980, after working 15 years in partnership with Sir Nicholas Grimshaw, Farrell founded his own firm, Farrells. He garnered a strong reputation for contextual urban design schemes, as well as exuberant works of postmodernism such as the MI6 building. In 1991 his practice expanded internationally, opening an office in Hong Kong. In Asia his firm designed KK100 in Shenzhen, the tallest building ever designed by a British architect, as well as Guangzhou South Railway Station, once the largest railway station in Asia.
  • Farrell is a prominent voice in British architecture and planning. At the 2013 invitation of Ed Vaizey, the Minister for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, his firm commenced the Farrell Review of Architecture and the Built Environment to offer expert guidance on the direction of British architecture.
  • Laura Sandys is chair of the European Movement UK and former British Conservative Party politician. She served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for South Thanet between the 2010 UK general election and 2015. Sandys stood down at the general election in 2015. Laura is the daughter of Lord Duncan Sandys, a member of parliament, and later a life peer, who served as Defence Secretary in Harold Macmillan's government.
  • Freddie Gick: A member of the Cheltenham Civic Society and a former Chairman of the Birmingham Civic Society, he has been involved in the movement for the past 17 years. His time as leader of the Birmingham Civic Society saw it grow significantly, notably through the introduction of major programmes in tree planting, Birmingham Trees for Life, and a schools’ programme, The Next Generation Awards Programme.