The CEO of the Youth Trust, Dan Finn, is leaving his role after 10 years. Dan has led the Youth Trust team over the past decade, helping to see over 100,000 children and young people take part in the Young Leaders Award (YLA).

The Archbishop of York, Stephen Cottrell noted that Dan has “inspired many in his leadership and has been a positive force for good.”

The Youth Trust was founded by Archbishop John Sentamu in 2009, with a vision for supporting young people to be the change they want to see in their communities, supporting their leadership, faith and character.

Dan joined the Youth Trust in 2011 as YLA Coordinator, and started by designing the KS3 and KS4 Awards, followed by the KS2 Award.

A decade has passed and Dan has led the team to huge growth, overseeing a partnership with Allchurches Trust which saw a £500k grant awarded, has seen the Trust’s staff team increase from 3 to 19 and the development of the KS1 YLA along with many other achievements.

A highlight of his time leading the Trust has been seeing Dan lead four pilgrimages to Taizé, taking hundreds of students from Yorkshire to explore God’s presence through the community of brothers in Taizé.

Dan said:

‍“I have loved my time with the Youth Trust. It’s been a humbling experience to have heard so many stories of how children and young people across the country have transformed lives through supporting their communities. I know I leave the Youth Trust in a really strong position and am hugely excited to see how the Trust and vision grows in the coming years. I’ll continue to cheer on the Youth Trust as an ambassador.”

Dan will leave the Youth Trust in August 2021, at which point Andrew Parker, who is currently a Trustee, will take on the role as interim CEO whilst the recruitment process is carried out. Andrew is a leadership consultant, and one of the professors who led on research that the University of Gloucester carried out about the Young Leaders Award in 2017.

The Youth Trust team are grateful for all that Dan has given to the Trust over the last decade and will remember their time with him fondly. Dan’s vision, fun and humility are markers for his character and time with the Youth Trust.

Dan is joining the Lancaster Foundation, a Christian charitable trust based in the North-West, as their Global Prayer and Mission Director. As part of his role, he’ll be helping to establish a House of Prayer in partnership with 24/7 Prayer, as well as working collaboratively on projects and initiatives that the Foundation partners with worldwide.