Sir Nigel Rudd, (born 31 December 1946 in

Derby Derby ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area on the River Derwent, Derbyshire, River Derwent in Derbyshire, England. Derbyshire is named after Derby, which was its original co ...

, England) is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants. In 1982, he founded Williams Holdings, a company which went on to become one of the largest industrial holding companies in the United Kingdom until its

demerger A demerger is a form of corporate restructuring in which the entity's business operations are segregated into one or more components. It is the converse of a Mergers and acquisitions, merger or acquisition. A demerger can take place through a cor ...

in November 2000, creating Chubb plc and Kidde plc. He became the non-executive chairman of Kidde plc until December 2003. He currently presides as chairman of BBA Aviation PLC.

Career

Rudd began his career as a troubleshooter for London & Northern, a holding company with subsidiaries in a range of industries. In 1982 he bought the Williams engineering company with business partner Brian McGowan. Rudd and McGowan went on to acquire and rebrand a portfolio of under-performing industrial companies throughout the 1980s. Rudd has been in positions of prominence at several corporations, including serving as Chairman of BAA Limited, The Boots Company, Pilkington PLC and Pendragon PLC, and Deputy Chairman of Barclays PLC until January 2009. Sir Nigel Rudd sits on the board of directors at the following companies BAA Aviation PLC (Chairman/non-executive director since 2014). Rudd previously held the directorships in Longbow Capital LLP (Director, 2004–2013) and Pendragon PLC (Chairman/NE Director, 1989–2010). Rudd is one of the founders of the New Entrepreneurs Foundation.

Personal life

Sir Nigel Rudd was born in Derby on 31 December 1946. His father worked for the civil service as a Weights and Measures Inspector. Rudd married his wife Lesley in 1969. The couple have three children. He is a keen golfer, chairing the board of directors of the exclusive Loch Lomond Golf Club, and supporter of Derby County Football Club.

Education

Rudd attended Bemrose Grammar School, Derby. Following his elder brother into accountancy, Rudd qualified as Britain's youngest chartered accountant at the age of 20.

Awards and honours

In 1996, Rudd was

knighted A knight is a person granted an honorary title of a knighthood by a head of state (including the pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church, or the country, especially in a military capacity. The concept of a knighthood ...

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

for services to the manufacturing industry. He holds honorary degrees at multiple tertiary institutions, namely

Loughborough Loughborough ( ) is a market town in the Charnwood (borough), Charnwood Borough of Leicestershire, England; it is the administrative centre of Charnwood Borough Council. At the United Kingdom 2021 census, the town's built-up area had a popula ...

and

Universities. In 1995, he was awarded the Founding Societies Centenary Award by the Institute of Chartered Accountants. He is a Deputy Lieutenant of

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

and a

Freeman of the City of London The Freedom of the City of London started around 1237 as the status of a 'free man' or 'citizen', protected by the charter of the City of London and not under the jurisdiction of a feudal lord. In the Middle Ages, this developed into a freedom or ...

. Rudd was Chancellor of

Loughborough University Loughborough University (abbreviated as ''Lough'' or ''Lboro'' for Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a public university, public research university in the market town of Loughborough, Leicestershire, England. It has been a university sinc ...

from July 2010 to July 2015. He is the Patron of Derby Grammar School.

References

External links

LU Profile
Loughborough University profile on Sir Nigel Rudd

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudd, Nigel 1946 births British chairpersons of corporations Living people People educated at Bemrose School Chancellors of Loughborough University Deputy lieutenants of Derbyshire Barclays people Businesspeople awarded knighthoods Knights Bachelor People named in the Panama Papers Businesspeople from Derby