Liam Gavin Grant (born 20 June 1955) is a British
public relations professional and from January 2012 to 25 February 2014 was
chief executive officer
A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization.
CEOs find roles in variou ...
of the
Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals
The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales which promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest a ...
. Grant is a former UK Chairman of PR firm
Burson-Marsteller
Burson (formerly Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW)) is a global public relations and communications firm, headquartered in New York City, focused on building reputation for clients.
In February 2018, parent WPP Group PLC announced that it had merged it ...
.
Early life
Grant was brought up on a
south London
South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...
council estate
Public housing in the United Kingdom, also known as council housing or social housing, provided the majority of rented accommodation until 2011, when the number of households in private rental housing surpassed the number in social housing. D ...
though had moved from the estate by the time he was attending secondary school. His mother was a needleshop-worker and his father was a cellophane salesman. Grant was educated at
Roan Grammar School for Boys (1966–1973) and the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...
(1973–1977).
He was a member of the
Young Liberals and became the
University of Reading
The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...
's youngest
student union
A students' union or student union, is a student organization present in many colleges, universities, and high schools. In higher education, the students' union is often accorded its own building on the campus, dedicated to social, organizatio ...
president.
Career
After graduating, he joined an
anti-racism
Anti-racism encompasses a range of ideas and political actions which are meant to counter racial prejudice, systemic racism, and the oppression of specific racial groups. Anti-racism is usually structured around conscious efforts and deliberate ...
campaign group and reported for the
Thatcher government on
community race relations.
From 1987-88 he was
campaigns director at the
Council for the Protection of Rural England
A council is a group of people who come together to consult, deliberate, or make decisions. A council may function as a legislature, especially at a town, city or county/shire level, but most legislative bodies at the state/provincial or nation ...
. He worked as
director of communications
Director of communications is a position in both the private and public sectors. A director of communications is responsible for managing and directing an organization's internal and external communications. Directors of communications supervis ...
for the RSPCA from 1988-91. In 1991, he joined as
public affairs director at the
Association of Unit Trusts and Investment Funds.
He worked as
corporate communications
Corporate communication(s) is a set of activities involved in managing and orchestrating all internal and external communications aimed at creating a favourable point of view among stakeholders on which a company depends. Riel, Cees B.M. van; Fo ...
manager at
The Body Shop
The Body Shop International Limited, trading as the Body Shop, is a British cosmetics, skin care, and perfume company founded in 1976 by Anita Roddick, who opened her first store in Brighton, England. The company is now based in London Bridge ...
International from 1993 to 1999, where he campaigned against the use of
animal testing
Animal testing, also known as animal experimentation, animal research, and ''in vivo'' testing, is the use of animals, as model organisms, in experiments that seek answers to scientific and medical questions. This approach can be contrasted ...
for
cosmetics
Cosmetics are substances that are intended for application to the body for cleansing, beautifying, promoting attractiveness, or altering appearance. They are mixtures of chemical compounds derived from either Natural product, natural source ...
. As UK chairman of PR company
Burson-Marsteller
Burson (formerly Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW)) is a global public relations and communications firm, headquartered in New York City, focused on building reputation for clients.
In February 2018, parent WPP Group PLC announced that it had merged it ...
from 2006 to 2011, his corporate clients included
Unilever
Unilever PLC () is a British multinational consumer packaged goods company headquartered in London, England. It was founded on 2 September 1929 following the merger of Dutch margarine producer Margarine Unie with British soap maker Lever B ...
, and he helped establish its
corporate social responsibility
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) or corporate social impact is a form of international private business industry self-regulation, self-regulation which aims to contribute to societal goals of a philanthropy, philanthropic, activist, or chari ...
unit.
Politics
Gavin Grant has been a lifelong member of the
Liberal Party
The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world.
The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...
and its successor the
Liberal Democrats.
[ He chaired the Western Counties regional party in 2011.
Grant has advised successive Liberal Democrat leaders, including Deputy Prime Minister ]Nick Clegg
Sir Nicholas William Peter Clegg (born 7 January 1967) is a British retired politician and media executive who served as Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2010 to 2015 and as Leader of the Liberal Democrats from 2007 to 2015. H ...
, and in 2007 he was part of Clegg's campaign to become party leader.
He was elected to Wiltshire Council
Wiltshire Council, known between 1889 and 2009 as Wiltshire County Council, is the Local government in England, local authority for the non-metropolitan county of Wiltshire (district), Wiltshire in South West England, and has its headquarters a ...
as the councillor for Malmesbury
Malmesbury () is a town and civil parish in north Wiltshire, England, which lies approximately west of Swindon, northeast of Bristol, and north of Chippenham. The older part of the town is on a hilltop which is almost surrounded by the upp ...
at the 2017 Wiltshire Council election and re-elected in 2021
Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...
.
Grant was Mayor of Malmesbury from 2023 to May 2024
Personal life
He lives in Wiltshire
Wiltshire (; abbreviated to Wilts) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It borders Gloucestershire to the north, Oxfordshire to the north-east, Berkshire to the east, Hampshire to the south-east, Dorset to the south, and Somerset to ...
and rents a flat in Horsham
Horsham () is a market town on the upper reaches of the River Arun on the fringe of the Weald in West Sussex, England. The town is south south-west of London, north-west of Brighton and north-east of the county town of Chichester. Nearby to ...
, West Sussex.
See also
* 2017 Wiltshire Council election
References
External links
Gavin Grant interview at Third Sector 20 February 2012.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Grant, Gavin
1955 births
Living people
People educated at the John Roan School
Alumni of the University of Reading
British animal welfare workers
British public relations people
Liberal Democrats (UK) people
Liberal Democrats (UK) councillors
Members of Wiltshire Council
RSPCA workers