South of Scotland Enterprise Board has welcomed the appointment of four new Board members.
Scottish Ministers announced the appointments today (Tuesday 15 February) of Viv Cockburn, Emma Guy, Kirsten Hannay and Paul Winstanley, who will take up their roles from 1 April 2022 for up to four years.
Each new Board member brings significant skills and experience to complement those of the existing Board members. This will assist SOSE’s work with people, businesses and communities across the South to establish the region as the centre of opportunity, innovation and growth.
Professor Russel Griggs, Chair of South of Scotland Enterprise, said:
“I am delighted to welcome our four new Board members to South of Scotland Enterprise.
“All bring different skills and experience to the Board, and all have extensive knowledge of the South and therefore know the various exciting opportunities we have in front of us.
“We want the South to be bold, ambitious and different – and I think each of our appointments will help us advance our journey to achieve this.
“I wish to thank each of the four Board members who were co-opted onto the Board in 2020 and will step down next month.
“They have played a vital role over the last two years in setting the strategic direction of SOSE and contributed to our efforts to support the South of Scotland during COVID-19 pandemic.”
New Board member biographies
- Viv Cockburn – Viv is a qualified, chartered accountant who is currently Vice-Chair of Berwickshire Housing Association and Public Interest Director for High Wood Health (Project Co) Ltd, the company responsible for designing, building, financing and maintaining Dumfries & Galloway Royal Infirmary. Viv was formerly a Trustee of Museums Galleries Scotland and director with Scottish Futures Trust (SFT), who are responsible for infrastructure investment across Scotland. Her roles at SFT included Director of Corporate Services and Low Carbon, and Director of Management and Investments. She is currently self-employed undertaking a number of Board roles and advisory work.
- Emma Guy – A former international mountain bike athlete, Emma set up The Hub in the Forest, based at Glentress near Peebles, and engaged the local community in cycling through kids classes, women’s skills training, and social events to break down barriers to the activity. She was then appointed Project Coordinator for the Tweed Valley Tourism Improvement District, creating a five year plan for adventure tourism in the area. Emma is currently Destination and Legacy Manager for the Enduro Sports Organisation based at Innerleithen, as well as working with Scotland’s Community Tourism Network.
- Kirsten Hannay – Kirsten is the Managing Partner of Kirkdale Estate on the Solway Firth. Her varied role includes responsibilities for farming, forestry, rural diversification, native woodland creation and long-term property management. In addition, she set up and runs a holiday let business and has created a holiday lodge park on the Estate. Previously, Kirsten established and ran a property management firm in Edinburgh and has over ten years’ experience in global publishing firms in London where she ran the global print marketing arm for The Economist Intelligence Unit, a division of The Economist Group. Kirsten has a BA Hons degree in French with Accounting from Newcastle University.
- Paul Winstanley – Currently, Paul is the CEO of CENSIS, one of Scotland’s innovation centres focussed on sensing, imaging and the Internet of Things (IoT). In this role, Paul has been pivotal in the development and implementation of digital solutions across the public and private sectors in Scotland. Paul’s early career was with UK Government, then with QinetiQ where he held a number of leadership roles including CEO of QinetiQ Inc. Subsequently, Paul has founded and ran a small technology business. Paul’s passions are the development and delivery of innovative game-changing solutions and supporting the development of high performing teams.
