Board of Trustees
Long-time supporter Brian Nelson joined the club’s Board of Directors in July 2014, after previously holding the position of Associate Director.
Brian, who was born in Nelson and is still a Pendle resident, is the co-owner of the established textile manufacturers Parklane Textiles Ltd alongside his wife Sandra.
He previously assisted the club by paying for team flights to away games, sponsoring equipment for the Academy and participating in the Turf Moor Bond – a process which enabled the club to repurchase its spiritual home and Gawthorpe training base in 2013.
Brian joined the Burnley FC in the Community board in July 2014 and is committed to ensuring Burnley FC has an active presence in the local community.
Barry resigned from his post as Burnley FC Chairman in May 2012 after a hugely successful 13-year stint at the helm of the club. Barry initially joined the club’s Board of Directors in October 1998 and was voted Chairman at the company’s annual general meeting two months later.
In a 2-1 rights issue in January 1999, he invested £3 million into the club to become its largest single shareholder. Barry’s business career has focused on the founding and building of the Europrint Group – the largest supplier of media games in the world. Barry sold this company in June 2003.
Barry now runs Total Gaming Solutions Ltd, a lottery management company for professional sports clubs, charities and other organisations.
Barry joined the Burnley FC in the Community board in July 2015 and, as a successful local businessman, he is committed to supporting the charity in ensuring Burnley FC is delivering on its community commitment to Burnley and the surrounding areas.
Born in Foulridge and a life-long resident of Pendle, Richard Sutton has supported Burnley FC for his entire life and is the club’s longest-standing sponsor (since 1988).
Richard is the former CEO and owner of Weston’s EU – a company that manufactures aerostructures in both the UK and Thailand. Now the owner and managing director of a property company, Richard is a Turf Moor bondholder and in the past he has assisted the club with a number of its fundraising schemes.
Within the scope of his charitable work, Richard is the Vice-Chairman of the Pendle Vision Board and a trustee of various charities that principally seek to work with local people. A Trustee of Burnley FC in the Community since April 2016, Richard is passionate about making a positive contribution to society by helping those less fortunate enjoy and benefit from equal opportunities in order to succeed.
Professor Philip Wilson is Chief Executive of the private provider Conde Nast College (part of the global Conde Nast International – owner of Vogue).
In addition, Philip is the Chair of Independent HE, representing fifty private providers to sector stakeholders.
He is also Chair of the Olympic governing body British Wheelchair Basketball to lead through and past the Tokyo Olympics.
Philip has a degree in Geography and MBA from the University of Liverpool, upon which he received the Paul Roy Award for ‘Outstanding academic contribution and achievement’.
David Rothwell is Assistant Principal at Nelson and Colne College where he is responsible for finance and resources.
He is passionate about supporting young people into sustainable and fulfilling careers, as well as the economic success of the county.
David is committed to supporting the club on its community commitments and ensuring exciting opportunities for East Lancashire’s young people.
David is a solicitor and Managing Director of Donald Race and Newton (DRN) Solicitors with offices in Burnley, Colne and on Network 65. DRN provide legal services for individuals and business owners across the region and will be supporting Burnley FC in the Community on a range of legal issues – the particular focus being on supporting the charity with the acquisition of facilities and the development of the charity’s capital programmes.
David is also a Director of Burnley Cricket Club and acts as a solicitor for a range of local charities and sports clubs including Burnley Golf Club.
David is a local resident living in Worsthorne and is married with two children. He is also a keen Burnley FC fan and is a season ticket holder at Turf Moor.
Lukman joined Burnley Borough Council in July 2015 as the Head of Governance, Law and Regulation, and was appointed as the Council’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) in November 2017.
Lukman read Law at the University of Lancaster which included a six-month exchange programme at the University of Maastricht, Netherlands.
He is a qualified solicitor who has spent the majority of his legal career practising in the private sector in Manchester. He joined the Council from Trafford MBC where he was the Head of Legal (Environment).
He is passionate about bringing a range of partners (private, public and third sector) together to deliver inclusive growth for the residents of the borough.
Mike Garlick is a long time supporter of Burnley FC and the Former Club Chairman. Born in Burnley, Mike has had great success in business and is the Global CEO of Michael Bailey Associates Group. He founded the company back in 1989 out of a small office in London. Since then, he has carefully managed its transition from a start up to an established international company with a portfolio of top tier clients, through organic growth as well as acquisitions.
Following the Club takeover, Mike has remained at Turf Moor as a director, working in partnership with new chairman Alan Pace ensuring a smooth transition to new ownership and providing valuable knowledge from his eight-year tenure as club chairman. This link to the Charity will be invaluable moving forward.
Alan Pace is an experienced leader in sports and financial services turnarounds with over 20 years of Wall Street experience and 10+ years of sports management and advising.
Most recently, Alan was a Managing Director and Global Head of Sales for Securities Services at Citi, responsible for overseeing all facets of client experience for a multibillion-dollar division. Alan joined Citi in May of 2008. Mr. Pace joined Citi from Sports Capital Partners Worldwide, where he was a Partner, responsible for oversight of Soccer assets and assistance with investments in other Sports and Entertainment assets.
Additionally, Alan was CEO of Real Salt Lake, a team in Major League Soccer, where he oversaw the turnaround of a consistently last place team through restructuring and enhancement to winning a league title. He has also advised team owners and leagues.
Councillor Anwar was first elected as a Burnley Borough Councillor in 2018 and was appointed Leader of the Council in May 2021 having previously held the Community and Environmental Services portfolio.
His career job is with Lancashire County Council, where he has been employed since 2012 as a Manager in the Education Improvement Service, and has had a varied career, including time as a Consular Assistant at the American Embassy; sports development roles at Hyndburn Borough Council, Burnley Borough Council and Blessed Trinity Roman Catholic College; and as the Faith Coordinator at the Burnley & Pendle Faith Centre.
Councillor Anwar grew up in Burnley and has spent the whole of his adult life living and working in the Burnley area. Committed to raising aspirations and community engagement, he is currently Chair of Governors at Barden Primary School; Building Bridges in Burnley; and a long serving Trustee at Burnley Ghausia Mosque. Amongst other commitments he has recently taken on a role of Trustee at Burnley FC in the community. In 2018 Councillor Anwar was awarded an MBE for services to Burnley in Her Majesty the Queens New Years Honours List.
Councillor Anwar’s administration is focussed on economic recovery from the effects of the COVID-19, ensuring Burnley gets the investment it needs for a more secure future, job retention and supporting our children and young people.
Shaykh Hashim Al-Kailani is the custodian of one of the biggest shrines in Sufi Islam and established the Al-Gillani Ghausia Centre in Brierfield. The centre runs a number of programmes for local people including seminars on education and business and weekly events/drop-in sessions which allow people to seek help/advice on a range of issues from a team of experts.
Shaykh Hashim Al-Kailani is a well know Muslim scholar and is invited to preach around the world, delivering seminars internationally on a range of subjects including building bridges between communities regardless of religion.
Shaykh is passionate about the local community and has always wanted to help improve the lives of residents across Pendle. He is a keen footballer, playing on a weekly basis, and is delighted that Burnley FC in the Community has invested money into Brierfield with the The Leisure Box which benefits all residents of Burnley and Pendle.
Dr Yasara Naheed is a GP partner at Thursby Surgery, Burnley, and Clinical Director for Burnley East Primary Care Network. She has practiced at Thursby Surgery since 2004 following her GP training.
Yas has lived in Nelson for over 40 years. Living and working in the area means she has a strong connection and understanding of the needs and challenges facing her patients. She recognises the value and importance of community and community assets and networks and this has influenced both her practice and her development of Population Health Management which she has led for the Burnley East Primary Care Network in partnership with her GP colleagues and other partners.
Prior to this Yas co-led a groundbreaking partnership between the local GP practices, primary schools, police and local youth theatre to help build resilience and confidence for young people. Her particular interests are mental health, women’s health and diabetes. She has also been involved in training of medical students and foundation doctors at the practice. In her spare time she enjoys playing badminton and watching football.
