All Change at Loughborough
29 Apr 2005
The Great Central Railway PLC has appointed six new directors in a bid to strengthen the Loughborough based railway.
New names on the board include George Green, Nigel Harris, Peter Morley, David Slack, Tony Sparks and Richard Tilden Smith. John East has stepped down as Chairman of the Board and Tony Sparks has been elected as the new Chairman. Graham Oliver is taking the opportunity to retire after ten years in the high-pressure role as Chief Executive. Robert Crew, an experienced railwayman, has been appointed as General Manager to run the railway. The new Chairman and Board thanked the outgoing Chairman and especially Graham Oliver for hard work and a job well done.
GCR says the appointment of the new directors is not just a matter of bringing in new blood but presages a step change in the Company’s direction. Tony Sparks, the new Chairman of GCR said, ‘The GCR has come a long way since it started as a small scale operation, running on a two-mile single track line between Loughborough and Quorn. It is now an eight mile main line railway between Loughborough and Leicester, including five miles of classic double track. Over the last few years, the railway has struggled to achieve financial robustness, as its trading figures show. Many supporters and the major shareholders felt that a new team was needed to develop the railway into the major tourist attraction.’
The Board’s top priority will be to put the railway on a more stable financial footing. Although some cost savings have already been made, the new Board believes that there is scope for further efficiencies. The appointment of a General Manager to run the railway on a day to day basis, in place of a Chief Executive, will ensure effective implementation of the Board’s strategy and policy decisions.