Hampshire Chamber of Commerce has strengthened its top team with the appointment of Donna Jones, Police and Crime Commissioner for Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.

Donna, who also chairs the National Association of Police and Crime Commissioners, joins the Chamber’s board as a non-executive director following a unanimous resolution. She will work alongside Chief Executive and Executive Chairman Ross McNally, President Peter Taylor and fellow board directors to help shape the Chamber’s strategic growth as the county’s independent voice of business.

Portsmouth-born Donna worked in banking and investment management before her election to Portsmouth City Council in 2008. She was the first woman to become Executive Leader, a role she held from 2014 to 2018.

She was appointed by the Lord Chancellor as a Magistrate to the South East Hampshire Bench in 2005. At the time of her appointment, she was the youngest member of the judiciary in England and Wales.

Since being elected Police and Crime Commissioner in May 2021, Donna has presided over a £500 million budget for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary.

In that time, she has recruited a new Chief Constable, funded 600 new additional police officers, committed to reopening police stations, and included the prevention of online crime and fraud among her business crime priorities.

She hosted a cybercrime conference in Winchester last year with the National Crime Agency, UK banks and the South East Cyber Resilience Centre, sharing advice for Hampshire businesses on how best to protect themselves against fraud and cyber-attacks.

Donna is also a business owner and has a long track record of sitting on the boards of companies. They include international shipping and port-based businesses and a large-scale commercial property management firm.

She was also a director of Solent Local Enterprise Partnership for four years. Donna said:

“As someone with over 25 years working in business and private enterprise, I’m delighted to be joining the board of Hampshire Chamber of Commerce as a non-executive director. The Chamber is a vital enterprise community supporting businesses with innovation, engagement and advocacy which I am honoured to be a part of."

“I have spent the last 15 years supporting businesses and being an interface into government, delivering on my passion to grow the GVA of the South East region. The future growth of businesses across Hampshire is vital to the success of the 1.8 million people living and working in the county. When businesses thrive, communities thrive, providing us with the foundation to build a better, safer, more prosperous region for the next generation."

“I’m looking forward to working with Chamber members to find collaborative solutions across the public and private sectors and to interface with the government where required.”

Ross McNally said:

“Donna understands business, was the leader of a major city in our region and will be a wise head to have around our table. Her experience, knowledge, ideas and energy will be invaluable. At the same time, she has expressed a strong desire to gain a better understanding of issues facing our members, including our many SMEs, so she can reflect that in her conversations with senior police figures. We look forward to working together with Donna in support of the business community.”

Donna’s appointment comes as the Chamber has grown revenue from international trade services, engaged more than 300 businesses through its leadership of the Solent Local Skills Improvement Plan and strengthened its PEER network community of employer members.

The Chamber’s other non-executive directors are: Peter Taylor, Chamber President and Senior Partner at law firm Paris Smith LLP; Ed Gould, Partner and Creative Director of creative communications agency Carswell Gould; Aaron Butson, Assistant Principal at Havant and South Downs College and chair of the Chamber’s Portsmouth & District business strategy group; Richard Thompson, Chief Executive Officer of The Business Magazine; Joe Jeffers, Finance Director of Hambledon, England’s oldest commercial vineyard, and previously Chief Financial Officer of Whiteley-based IT and communications provider Tailor Made Technologies; Mark Mills-Goodlet, Managing Director of Winchester Motor Group and chair of the Chamber’s Winchester business strategy group; Barry Smith, chair of the Chamber’s Basingstoke business strategy group; Mandy Boughton, Southampton-based Managing Director of Ancasta Yacht Services, part of the Ancasta group, Europe’s biggest boat and yacht sales brokerage; Andrew Kaye, Principal and Chief Executive of Fareham College; and retail banking expert Liana Broe, Local Enterprise Manager at NatWest and chair of the Chamber’s Andover business strategy group.