Bill Holroyd – Chairman and Founder
The development of OnSide stemmed from Bill’s time as Chairman of Bolton Lads and Girls Club, where he was overwhelmed by the positive impact it made on the lives of young people in the area, and felt that every town should have one of these amazing facilities.
Bill has extensive business and property interests in the UK and has been an investor / director with over 25 companies in the last 15 years. His first business, Holroyd Meek, was developed in Oldham.
Bill Ainscough
Bill is the Chairman of Wainhomes Ltd and Chairman of Langtree Group Plc. Lancashire-born, Bill is a prominent North West businessman who currently resides in Wigan and is one of the key sponsors of the Wigan Boys and Girls Club. He is also non-executive member of Lancashire County Cricket Club’s Business Committee.
Bill has extensive experience in the development and construction industry which will be a huge asset to the board.
Chris Oglesby
Chris was appointed Chief Executive of Bruntwood Estates in 1999. Bruntwood’s success is inextricably linked with the success of the cities in which it operates. Aligned with this, Chris has become an expert in Local Area Partnerships. He sits on the boards of CityCo (Manchester’s City Centre Management Company), The Piccadilly Partnership, City South (the area including the universities and hospitals), The Irwell City Park in Manchester and is currently working on establishing a group for the City’s Financial Core.
In Liverpool and Leeds, he has taken best practice and worked with local Directors to get The Liverpool Commercial District and The West End Partnerships established.
Chris is a Trustee of The Oglesby Charitable Trust which works with more than 40 community based charities a year.
Danny Hall
Daniel is a ‘hands on’ lawyer and a skilled negotiator at Eversheds LLP. He has a wealth of experience in advising public and private companies on acquisitions, public bids, disposals and fundraisings. He is head of the PLC and flotations know-how unit in Manchester, has expertise in takeover code offers and is a new issues specialist.
Daniel is a visiting lecturer in law at Manchester University and a regular speaker at seminars and conferences.
Jim Smith
Jim is Managing Director of Clear Marketing Communications, established in November 2000. Clear is now one of the fastest growing independent agency groups outside London. Jim has served as a non-executive Director for a number of companies, is a regular contributor to the BBC GMR business programmes and is a member of the Young Presidents Organisation.
Jim is also a Director on The Factory Youth Zone, Manchester (Harpurhey) Board.
Karen Griffiths
Karen Griffiths is a former Chairman of Bolton Lads and Girls Club and holds the Human Relations portfolio on the OnSide board. She has wide experience at board level in the private and public sectors as well in the voluntary sector.
As an executive director and major shareholder of the Mikar Group she held responsibility for HR, Marketing, and Design and Development in its specialist clothing manufacturing subsidiaries and was a founder and non-exec director of training company, SITU.
Margaret Preston
Margaret has worked as a teacher in both primary and secondary education. In 2006, she gained a graduate diploma in counselling and now has a private practice as well as working as a counsellor in a Macmillan Cancer Centre.
She has also had a significant involvement with young people as a scout leader for over ten years.
Ross Warburton MBE
Ross is Chairman of Warburtons and is also Chairman of a number of major companies in the food industry. The family firm is the biggest employer in Bolton and has been a core supporter of the Club for many years. Ross become president of the Bolton Lads and Girls Club in 1998 and has taken a keen and active role ever since.
Having seen the impact that a modern well run youth centre can have on the whole community, Ross is determined to share the skills and experiences developed in Bolton, across the North West.
Virginia Halliwell
Virginia has lived and worked in the North West since graduating from Manchester University in the late 1970s with a Law Degree. She is a Chartered Accountant and worked in Investment Banking, latterly with Merrill Lynch. In the late 1990s she and her late partner established, then sold, Telinco plc a telecommunications business based in the North West.
Virginia is OnSide’s Treasurer.
William Lees-Jones
William is managing director of JW Lees (Brewers) Limited, a family firm with a long history of brewing, based in Middleton with outlets across the North West.
William is also the Chair of Mahdlo Youth Zone (Oldham). With his extensive contacts in the area, in the last six months, he has launched the “Oldham Club”, recruited a President and Board of Directors and received guarantees of over £450,000 in future revenue funding for the new youth zone.
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