Exclusive: He told staff on Thursday it was 'the right time for the Trustees to bring in fresh leadership to steer the JLC through the new challenges ahead'
January 30, 2020 11:04
Simon Johnson has announced he is standing down as the Chief Executive of the Jewish Leadership Council.
The former lawyer – who was appointed chair of the Rugby Football League [RFL] last October – will leave in September, seven years after first joining the charity.
Prestwich-born Mr Johnson, a former chair of Hampstead Garden Suburb synagogue, broke the news of his departure to JLC staff on Thursday.
Announcing this decision, Mr Johnson wrote to staff and trustees: "In September of 2020, I will have been Chief Executive for seven years. I have consistently said that this is the maximum period that I would serve in this role.
“Additionally, having led the JLC through the Independent Review for the Charity Commission, the Governance Review, the latest funding cycle and, of course, the Enough is Enough campaign and the General Election, I think this is the right time for the Trustees to bring in fresh leadership to steer the JLC through the new challenges ahead.”
He added: "This role has been in my heart and I am immensely proud of what we have achieved together...
"We have built confidence in the JLC, given it an identity and a reputation to be proud of.
“We have put in place a regional structure which has transformed the community’s political engagement. We have broadened our financial base."
JLC chair Jonathan Goldstein wrote: "Since becoming JLC chair almost three years ago, Simon and I have worked incredibly closely.
“He has been at the forefront of delivering the JLC’s agenda and served as an extremely eloquent advocate for our community at home and abroad.
“His time as Chief Executive has been full of challenges and he has met them all head on and leaves the JLC in a far stronger state.
“My predecessor, Sir Mick Davis, made an inspired choice almost seven years ago in appointing Simon and we will now begin the difficult process of identifying a replacement for him.”
Speaking to the JC last October after his appointment as RFL chair, he said: “With immense thanks to Sir Mick Davis [former JLC chair] and the trustees, when I joined they allowed me within my contract to have up to four days a month doing non-executive work, provided it had their approval.
"And they approved for me to join the [RFL] board in the first place. The role of RFL chair, as luck would have it, occupies four days a month.
“Although in practice there is extra work to be done around that, I’m committed to do it, my [JLC] trustees have agreed that I can do it, for which I am immensely grateful, and I know that I can do it because I can manage my time.”
In his time at the JLC, Mr Johnson played a leading role in its restructuring after the sudden departure of former chief executive Jeremy Newmark.
He has been outspoken in his criticism of Labour under Mr Corbyn and has been instrumental in growing the JLC's membership and expanding work of the organisation across the regions.
Mr Johnson has worked for 20 years in sports and media and was a senior lawyer at the Premier League and director of corporate affairs at the Football Association, where he worked on England's bid to host the 2018 Men's World Cup.
Last year, Mr Johnson told the JC that he never goes to Friday night rugby games, and if there is a game on Shabbat afternoon — “many of the finals are, the Challenge Cup, the Super League Grand Final” - he will either “stay in a hotel right near the ground, or I will walk from somewhere. I don’t drive on Shabbat".
