Community Foundation Annual Meeting with keynote speaker, Jon Cruddas (Guest)

We are delighted to invite you to join Community Foundation trustees and members at our Annual Meeting which will be held on the afternoon of Wednesday 4 November 2026 at Great North Museum: Hancock, Barras Bridge, Newcastle upon Tyne NE2 4PT.

Our keynote speaker will be Jon Cruddas, co-chair (with Sir Sajid Javid) of the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion. Established following riots across the UK in summer 2024 and supported by the Together Coalition, the Commission’s task is to examine how to build a more united country where people come together, share common stories, and live in places where everyone feels able to belong and participate.

Jon Cruddas was an MP from 2001-2024 having previously served as deputy political secretary to Prime Minister Tony Blair, working particularly on labour market policy. While an MP, Jon served in the shadow cabinet as policy co-ordinator. He is currently a Senior Fellow at the McDonald Centre for Theology, Ethics, and Public Life at the University of Oxford, an Honorary Fellow of Nuffield College Oxford and Honorary Professor at the Jubilee Centre for Character and Virtues at the University of Birmingham.

The event will start at 1.00pm with refreshments and a light lunch. From 2.00pm, there will be a review of our year followed by the keynote speech, panel discussion and audience Q and A. We will close at 3.30pm.

The event is in-person only. In your registration, please let us know of any dietary or access requirements.

Photo: Jon Cruddas

Our panel

Oliver Armstrong is a storyteller, organiser, facilitator, creative practitioner and systems-change strategist with 20+ years’ experience working alongside communities across climate justice, housing, culture, energy and democratic participation. His work is rooted in grassroots and post-industrial communities, particularly in the North East, and focuses on building community power and ensuring marginalised voices shape the decisions that affect them. He works “by, for and with” communities, combining organising, creative engagement and systems thinking to support more just, democratic and regenerative futures.

Ngozi Lyn Cole is co-founder of the North East Anti-Racism Coalition (NEARC) which was set up in 2024 as a movement of organisations and individuals of all ethnicities committed to making the North East a place where diversity is celebrated, inclusion is the norm, and everyone feels safe and valued. The aim is for the region to be one that actively opposes racism, and hatred based on religious identity. Ngozi also holds non-executive posts including Chair, North East Justice Together Initiative and Vice-Chair, South Tyneside and Sunderland NHS Foundation Trust. In a freelance capacity, Ngozi works with organisations in the voluntary, private and public sectors on leadership and equity, diversity and inclusion. Previously she spent 18 years at the National Lottery Community Fund including as its England Director.

Jane Robinson is Newcastle University’s Pro-Vice-Chancellor, Business, Partnerships and Place and is its executive lead for sustainability and social justice. Previously Jane was Durham University’s Chief Operating Officer and, prior to that, Chief Executive of Gateshead Council. Jane has also held leadership positions in the cultural sector, including Director of External Relations at Arts Council England. She is a Deputy Lieutenant for Tyne and Wear, chairs the North East Confederation for British Industry (CBI) and Insights North East, holds non-executive positions, including at the Centre for Life and Centre for Cities, and serves as a commissioner on the Independent Commission on Community and Cohesion.