A new independent chair has been appointed to the Future Ambition Board for Bath and North East Somerset – a partner organisation that is helping make the area a fair, green, creative and connected place.

Sonya Chowdhury will chair the Future Ambition Board (FAB) which is a partnership of the Royal United Hospitals, Bath, housing developer and association Curo, the University of Bath, Bath Spa University, Third Sector providers, Bath and North East Somerset Council, business and a number of other networks.

Ms Chowdhury brings more than 25 years of professional, management and leadership experience and has extensive board experience. She is chief executive of the charity, Action for ME, and she co-founded and co-chairs the World ME Alliance for ME/CFS. She previously held the role of non-Executive Director (NED) at Curo Group.

Ms Chowdhury said: “I am delighted to be appointed to the role of chair and excited to work with the Future Ambition Board partners to positively impact the lives of people in Bath and North East Somerset.

“The board’s work will build on the Civic Agreement where partners have signed up to work better together and consolidate strengths for the benefit of all our communities.”

The chair’s responsibilities include promoting a positive and creative environment for the board’s partners; helping the partnership to articulate its vision and purpose within the region and beyond; and helping to retain strategic focus around the One Shared Vision, which the partnership has been collaborating on since 2020.

The Future Ambition Board has also been leading efforts to deliver Bath and North East Somerset’s new Economic Strategy, with higher wages, boosted productivity, greener businesses and more affordable housing in the district.

More information about the partnership can be found on the Future Ambition website.