Sir Ian James Dudson is an English industrialist, chief executive and later non-executive chairman of the ceramics company

Dudson Dudson is a British company that manufactured tableware, glassware and porcelain, in Hanley, Stoke-on-Trent. It is one of the oldest brands of its industry in England, founded in 1800. The former pottery works is the location of the Dudson C ...

Stoke-on-Trent Stoke-on-Trent (often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Staffordshire, England. It has an estimated population of 259,965 as of 2022, making it the largest settlement in Staffordshire ...

. He has served as Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire from 2012.

Life

Dudson is a descendant of Richard Dudson, who founded the ceramics company

Hanley Hanley is one of the Federation of Stoke-on-Trent, six towns that, along with Burslem, Longton, Staffordshire, Longton, Fenton, Staffordshire, Fenton, Tunstall, Staffordshire, Tunstall and Stoke-upon-Trent, amalgamated to form the City of Stoke- ...

, in 1800."Our History"
''The Dudson Centre''. Version dated 14 July 2024 retrieved via the

Wayback Machine The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by Internet Archive, an American nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. Launched for public access in 2001, the service allows users to go "back in ...

."Lord Lieutenant for Staffordshire"
GOV.UK. Version dated 26 April 2023 retrieved via the Wayback Machine. He graduated in General Science at the

University of Dundee The University of Dundee is a public research university based in Dundee, Scotland. It was founded as a university college in 1881 with a donation from the prominent Baxter family of textile manufacturers. The institution was, for most of its ...

, and studied Ceramic Technology at North Staffordshire Polytechnic (now the University of Staffordshire). He joined Dudson in 1973, and from 1988 was chief executive. More recently he has held the position of non-executive chairman."Ian Dudson CBE"
Staffordshire University. Version dated 26 April 2023 retrieved via the Wayback Machine. He was appointed

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

in 2002, for services to the ceramic industry. He became a Deputy Lieutenant of Staffordshire in 2001, and from 2012 has served as Lord Lieutenant of Staffordshire. In April 2025, his retirement from this post on 15 July 2025 was announced. He was

High Sheriff of Staffordshire This is a list of the sheriffs and high sheriffs of Staffordshire. The sheriff is the oldest secular office under the Crown. The sheriff was the principal law enforcement officer in the county but over the centuries most of the responsibilities as ...

for 2010–2011. He was Pro-Chancellor of

Keele University Keele University is a Public university#United Kingdom, public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, it was granted uni ...

and Chair of Council from 2005 to 2012."The Lord-Lieutenant and Vice Lord-Lieutenant"
Staffordshire County Council. Version dated 9 August 2022 retrieved via the Wayback Machine. Dudson was appointed in 2013 Commander of the Order of St John, in recognition of his contribution towards "strengthening the spirit of mankind", and in 2017 became a Knight of the Order of St John. In 2014 he was made Honorary Doctor of the University of Staffordshire. He is Chair of the Trustees of the Dudson Centre, a community resource centre in Stoke-on-Trent for voluntary organisations. He was made a

Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order The Royal Victorian Order () is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the monarch, members of the royal family, or to any viceroy or senior representative of the m ...

in the

2025 New Year Honours The 2025 New Year Honours are appointments by King Charles III among the 15 Commonwealth realms to Orders and decorations of the Commonwealth realms, various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The ...

."King's New Year Honours for Staffordshire"
Staffordshire County Council, 30 December 2024. Version dated 15 January 2025 retrieved via the Wayback Machine.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dudson, Ian Living people Year of birth missing (living people) People from Stoke-on-Trent Alumni of Staffordshire University Lord-lieutenants of Staffordshire People associated with Keele University Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Knights of the Order of St John High sheriffs of Staffordshire Businesspeople from Staffordshire