NON-EXECUTIVE
The Court of Assistants
This is the Management Board of the Company. Chaired by the Master, the Court is made up of four Wardens and all current Assistants. The prime purpose of the Court of Assistants is to scrutinise and ratify the actions and recommendations of all the Company’s committees, including the Court of Wardens. The Assistants are also responsible for the overall administration of the Company’s charities, ensuring best practice and compliance with Charity Commission guidance. There are currently 37 Assistants on the Court, including His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh KG KT GCVO who is an honorary Court Assistant.
The Court of Wardens
The most senior members of the Court of Assistants are the Master (equivalent to a Chair) and the Wardens – collectively known as the Court of Wardens (equivalent to a Board of Trustees) – who are elected each year by the Assistants.
Chaired by the Master, the Court of Wardens comprises of four Wardens and Master or Lady Master. They are supported by the Clerk, along with the Senior Management Team. It handles all matters relating to the policy and direction of the Company. The positions on the Court change annually, as the Master holds the post for one year (November to November), before returning to the Court of Assistants.
Master: Alderman Sir William Russell
William has over thirty years of experience in the financial and business sectors in the City, including holding senior positions in national and international banking. In 1987, he joined the First Boston Corporation before moving to Merrill Lynch in 1992 as an investment banker in Institutional Equity Sales, working across Asia, New York, and London. William is currently Chair of CDAM, a London-based asset management business; co-Chair of the UK-China Green Finance Taskforce with Dr Ma Jun; and a non-executive Director of Augmentum Fintech Investment Trust.
William took office as the 692nd Lord Mayor of the City of London in November 2019. To ensure continuity of leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic, he remained in office until November 2021. He is a former Governor of Haberdashers’ School for Girls, Haberdashers’ Adams Grammar School, and Haberdashers’ Abraham Darby, and served as Sheriff of the City of London in 2016–17.
First Warden: Anthony Cann
Anthony spent his career at Linklaters from 1969 to 2006, beginning as a trainee and ultimately becoming worldwide Senior Partner (Chair), having spent over six years in the New York office. Specialising in corporate, M&A, and finance law, he led the Corporate Department, spearheaded negotiations on the firm’s European mergers, and was elected Senior Partner.
In 2007, he became Governor of HATS until 2011, when he joined the Haberdashers’ Company as a Free member and was invited to become Governor of HWMAT, with a view to serving as Chair in 2013. He joined the Livery in 2012, the Court in 2013, and in 2019, retired as Chair of HWMAT. Anthony later rejoined the HATS Board and served as Chair of Borough until retiring in December 2022.
Second Warden: Simon Cartmell OBE
Following his education at Haberdashers’ Monmouth School and a degree in Medical Microbiology from the University of Manchester, Simon has spent over 40 years working in the life sciences and healthcare sector. He is a serial entrepreneur in early-stage healthcare ventures. His early career involved senior commercial leadership roles in blue-chip pharmaceutical and biotech companies.
In 2003, he joined a venture capital-backed med-tech startup as CEO. Over seven years, he developed ApaTech Ltd into a world-leading orthobiologics company prior to its sale in 2010.
Subsequently, as an Operating Partner for leading UK venture capital firms, he used his insights to support early and growth-stage private ventures. He currently serves as Chair of three international orthopaedic and spine surgery-focused firms and is a NED of a US-based digital health business.
Third Warden: Kunle Olafare
Fourth Warden: Helen Gough
Helen is a Chartered Surveyor working in commercial real estate and construction, with a career that began at Hillier Parker, King Sturge, and JLL, where she sat on the UK Executive Board and Global Project and Development Services Board. Dedicated to creating a more inclusive property profession, she founded the JLL Gender Balance Group and served as a Trustee of the JLL Foundation.
With a strong stakeholder focus, Helen is now Director of Property at the Whitgift Foundation, supporting education and community care through land and property management.
A Freeman of the City since 2007, Helen returned to her Livery family, joining the Haberdashers’ Company in 2017. She served as a Governor at Habs Elstree until 2024, joined the Court of Assistants in 2019, and is Chair of the Property Committee.
Committees:
The work of the Company is undertaken by Committees, ranging from the Finance Committee and Securities Committee, to the Education Committee and Charity Committee, to the Fine Arts Committee.
If you are interested in finding out more about or joining a committee, please speak to the Clerk.
Members:
The Haberdashers’ Company is a proud members’ organisation. Our membership is drawn from a diverse range of backgrounds, from former alumni of Haberdasher schools, to professionals across a wide range of industries and sectors.
Those 1000+ members enter via one of three routes into the Company: Apprenticeship, Redemption (or skill set), Patrimony (or family connections).
Whatever ones route into the Company, our members are united by a desire to give back.
Haberdashers have always believed in leaving the world in a better place, playing a fundamental role in our ability to deliver on our purpose of “empowering young people from every background to fulfil their potential”.
EXECUTIVE
A permanent executive staff, headed by the Clerk, runs the organisation on a day-to-day basis on behalf of the Court of Assistants.
The Clerk
Angus Watson is Clerk of the Haberdashers’ Company – a role rather like that of the Chief Executive. He holds previous experience as a senior leader in demanding operational, training and education appointments in the British Army. Since leaving the Armed Forces he has turned his attentions to senior executive roles, making use of his skills as a leader, manager, and mentor. Angus has broad experience of leading organisations of more than 1,000 people, both in the UK and overseas. He is passionate about people, forming them into teams and setting them on a path to success. In addition, he has a particular interest in work which delivers tangible improvement to communities.
The Beadle
The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, one of the Great Twelve City Livery Companies, is an ancient merchant guild of London associated with the silk and velvet trades.
The Beadle is a a traditional ceremonial role, and today it includes the role of Hall and grounds manager.
PA to the Master and Clerk
Sanita has held a number of roles in her 38 years of service with the Company and the Personal Assistant to the Master and Clerk since 2013.
She also helps with organising Company dinners and other events. She has also been Chairman of the Bread Street Ward Club (the President of the Club being Alderman Sir William Russell). She is also a member of the Freedom.