Roy O’Shaughnessy, Chair
Roy was born in England but moved to Central and Southern Africa with his family before his first birthday. During this time, Roy lived in Zambia and Zimbabwe as his dad worked for the copper mines and railways to improve efficiency. At age eighteen, Roy spent almost three years in remote parts of Zimbabwe during the country’s fight for independence, working in a civic capacity for the District Commissioner in Chipenge, close to the border with Mozambique.
Roy attended Sunday School and Church while growing up and committed to the Christian faith during his teenage years. Thanks to The Evangelical Alliance Mission in Zimbabwe, Roy had the opportunity to attend university in America. He pursued his education at Houghton College, a Wesleyan Liberal Arts college in New York State, and later attended Fuller Theological Seminary in California.
While in the United States, Roy worked with several organisations, including the Fuller Institute for Evangelism and Church Growth, the Presbyterian Church of Sunnyvale, and Episcopal Charities. He also served as the Stated Pulpit Supply for the Welsh Presbyterian Church in Los Angeles while attending seminary.
In 2004, Roy returned to the UK and assumed the position of Director of Development at St Christopher’s Fellowship, a children’s services charity. He then held Group CEO roles for Careers Development Group, Shaw Trust, and Capital City College Group. In each position Roy has undertaken, there has been a compelling social mission with a need for commercial acumen and a charitable purpose to achieve success. Throughout his career, he has played a central role in establishing innovative operating models, developing commercially sustainable activities to contribute cash reserves to charitable entities, and improving performance across complex groups.
Roy was integral in launching new ventures in his CEO roles, such as the Shaw Education Trust, 01Founders, and Visionnaires. He also led significant mergers and acquisitions, bringing the Disabled Living Foundation, Ixion and Prospects into the Shaw Trust Group. Roy retired from paid executive roles in March 2023.
Before his retirement, Roy served on several boards, including as the past Chair of Yateley Industries for the Disabled, and European VP for Rehabilitation International. In 2018 Roy led Shaw Trust in hosting the Global Conference for Rehabilitation in Edinburgh. He is a former Governor at Welburn Primary School in North Yorkshire, serves on the Executive Committee of St Michael’s Church in Crambe and chairs the Barton Le Willows Parish Council. In addition, Roy also chairs Bellanno Ltd and Twin Group.
Roy is married and has two children. His son is grown up and lives in the USA while his daughter is still in school and serves as a chorister at York Minster.
Roy’s association with the YMCA started as a teenager in Zimbabwe. It continued whilst living in San Francisco, where he was a member of the YMCA and a founding paying member of the Presidio YMCA. In the UK, several YMCAs were valued sub-contractors to CDG and Shaw Trust, supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged people to find work.