The Financial Services Skills Council (FSSC), the sector skills council for the financial services sector, has appointed Roy Leighton as its new chairman.
Leighton, a member of the Chancellor’s High Level Group, takes over from Stuart Bernau, retail director at financial services firm Nationwide. He has previously served as chair of the Practitioner Panel at watchdog, the Financial Services Authority, and has also been chairman of the Financial Services Sector Advisory Board for the government body UK Trade & Investment.
Leighton joined the board of the skills council when it was first established in March 2004, and in 2007 became the its first deputy chair.
He said: “The UK’s financial services industry can only continue to flourish if we can meet the skills needs of employers.
“I am delighted to be able to champion the work of the skills council through this period of changes and challenges, from the Retail Distribution Review to the future of education and skills in the UK.”
Gareth Marr, an FSSC Board member will take over Leighton’s post. Marr is a director of private client advisory firm, The Red House, formed in 2007, and was formerly chief executive of financial advice business Origen.
Both appointments assume their new roles at the next board meeting on 21 February.
