Dame Julia Cleverdon DCVO, CBE
Vice President, Business in the Community
Julia Cleverdon is Vice President of Business in the Community, a unique movement of 800 companies across the UK committed to improving continually their positive impact on society. Julia was Chief Executive of Business in the Community for 16 years, from 1 April 1992 – 1 March 2008.
During this period Julia has established a formidable reputation as a renowned leader and speaker on corporate responsibility and has personally been responsible for introducing new thinking and action from within the UK’s top boardrooms.
Her energies in promoting responsible business practice and the significant impact of the campaigns of Business in the Community led to her being listed by The Times as one of the 50 most influential women in Britain. She was appointed CBE in 1996, CVO in the New Year’s Honours’ list 2002 and DCVO in the Queen's Honours list in 2008.
Under Julia’s leadership the collective activities of Business in the Community have expanded to impact across local communities, support positive environmental activity, promote diversity and best practice in the workplace and encourage ethical operations in the wider marketplace.
In her voluntary roles, Julia serves as chair of Teach First, whose mission is to address educational disadvantage by transforming exceptional graduates into effective, inspirational teachers and leaders in all fields. She has recently been invited to join the National Council for Educational Excellence to lead a review for the Prime Minister on how education-business partnerships can contribute to educational excellence and is a member of the Prime Minister’s Talent and Enterprise Taskforce Advisory Group.
Prior to her work at Business in the Community, Julia served as Director of The Industrial Society’s Education and Inner City Division from 1981 – 1988, during which time The Industrial Society became the leading provider of management training for education and voluntary organisations. She started her career working in industrial relations for British Leyland.
Julia is also a director of ‘In Kind Direct’, patron of both the Helena Kennedy Bursary Scheme and Volunteer Reading Help and an Ambassador for the World Wildlife Fund.
Julia was married to the late John Garnett, director of the Industrial Society, and has two daughters aged 21 and 25.
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