John Sorrell beats Chris Smith to become chairman of CABE.
John Sorrell has been announced as the new chair of the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment.
Sorrell was chairman of the UK Design Council from 1994 to 2000 and currently runs a foundation, which helps designers improve schools and health services.
Paul Finch, the interim chair of CABE said: “John is an entrepreneur, an innovator and a man who has already proved his ability to lead an organisation like CABE."
“He has wide-ranging, high-level experience of design and the arts. He has extensive knowledge of the creative industries, and a real commitment to helping young people learn about and engage with the built environment."
Sorrell recently set up the annual London Design Festival and is a member of the DfES London Challenge Ministerial Advisory Group and the DfES Advisory Group on School Buildings Design.
Richard Simmons, CABE chief executive said: “I believe John’s clarity of vision will make an outstanding contribution to the quality of architecture, public spaces and Urban Design.”
Finch was recently appointed editor of the Architectural Review.
The new CABE chair currently runs the Sorrell Foundation
which helps encourage creativity in young people.
