Arts Council Membership - December 2007 to November 2011

Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure, Edwin Poots MLA, announced the re-appointment of Ms Rosemary Kelly as Chairman of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.

This re-appointment came into effect from 1st December 2007 and runs for 4 years.

The following members of the Council have been reappointed to serve a second term:

Eithne Benson
Katherine Bond
Anthony Kennedy
William H C Montgomery
Sharon O’Connor
Peter Spratt
Raymond Fullerton


Culture Minister, Edwin Poots, MLA has also announced the appointment of a new Vice-Chairman and five new Board Members of the Arts Council of Northern Ireland.

Following open competition, Damien Coyle has been appointed as Vice-Chairman and Paul Seawright, Joseph Rice, David Irvine, Brian Sore and Janine Walker have been appointed as Board Members of the Arts Council.

The Council has been appointed for 4 years to the end of November 2011.

Welcoming the new members Edwin Poots said: “I am very pleased to make these appointments and I am looking forward to working with all the members of Council in the changing and challenging times ahead. I recognise the valuable contribution the arts make to the social, economic and cultural life of Northern Ireland and the vital role the Arts Council plays in supporting this.”

Mr Poots also expressed his sincere thanks to the outgoing members for their contribution and commitment to the work of the Arts Council during their terms of appointment. The outgoing members are: Martin Bradley, Jill McEneaney, Tim Kerr and Gearóid Ó hEara. Two additional vacancies have also been filled.


The Arts Council is the statutory body through which public funding for the arts in Northern Ireland, is channelled. The Council was established as a statutory body by the Arts Council (Northern Ireland) Order 1995 on 1 September 1995. It is funded via grant-in-aid by the Department of Culture, Arts and Leisure (DCAL) and is managed by a Board which normally consists of 15 members. The terms of office of outgoing members expired on 30 November 2007. Members are appointed by the Minister for Culture, Arts and Leisure.

The post of Chairman receives an honorarium of £8378 per annum, the post of Vice-Chair receives an honorarium of £3,500 per annum. The members’ positions are unpaid, with members receiving expenses only.

The appointments process was carried out in accordance with the Office of the Commissioner for Public Appointments Code of Practice. A selection panel, which included an independent assessor, as required under the Commissioner’s Code, considered the suitability of all candidates. The final decision on the appointments rested with the Minister.

All appointments are made on merit and political activity plays no part in the selection process. However, in accordance with the original Nolan recommendations, there is a requirement for the political activity of appointees (if declared) to be published.

Ms Rosemary Kelly , (Chairman) is a former Head of Public Affairs and Company Secretary for BBC Northern Ireland. She is currently a Governor of the Irish Times, and a member of the Council of the University of Ulster. She is also Chairman of Help the Aged in Northern Ireland and a Trustee of its International Board in London. She was formally Chairman of the Ormeau Baths Gallery, and Deputy Chair of the Ulster Orchestra; as well as having been a founding member of the Irish Film and Television Academy. She has not declared any political activity during the past five years.
Mr Damien Coyle, (Vice-Chair) Damien is Director of Operations in Speechmatters (part of the Stroke Association). Damien has been an arts practitioner for the past 25 years and has experience of working for many arts organisations including Acting Director of the Old Museum Arts Centre and Chairperson of KABOSH Theatre Company.
Mrs Eithne Benson, is from Rostrevor and is Head of Music for the Southern Education and Library Board. She has served on Newry and Mourne District Council as an Arts Committee member and was a member of the Northern Ireland Curriculum Council’s working group which developed music guidelines and materials. For the last four years she has been the Northern Ireland representative on the executive committee of the Federation of Music Services. She has taught Music and French and has been involved in drama, orchestras and choirs in a private capacity. Until recently, Mrs Benson has been a board member of the Ulster Youth Orchestra and has been actively involved in its development since its formation in 1983. She also holds management qualifications.
Ms Kate Bond , is from the city of Derry and is Head of Cultural Development at the University of Ulster. She has a professional background in arts and cultural development in Northern Ireland in the not for profit and public sectors having worked for Field Day Theatre Company, the Lyric Theatre and been Community Relations Officer for Coleraine Borough Council. Prior to taking up post in the University of Ulster, she was Arts Manager for the City and district of Armagh where her main responsibility was to lead the design, build and establishment of the Market Place Theatre and Arts Centre and the strategic development of the arts in the local authority area. She is a Director of An Grianán Theatre and a Creative Champion for the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts in NI.
Mr Raymond Fullerton is a consultancy and change management specialist who formerly held senior management positions in the private sector which include Pricewaterhousecoopers and retail investment banks. He currently works for BT and is a senior partner in his own consultancy firm. He was on the boards of Young Enterprize SE area, LIELG (part of the NI Business Education Partnership), and currently on the boards of the British Computer Society and the Ulster Youth Choir. He is interested in a wide spectrum of arts media.
Mr David Irvine David is the Regional Head of Risk Consulting for Marsh Ltd, a leading risk and insurance services firm. He has also been a National Judge for Arts and Business National Awards in London. David is currently the Chair of ‘Moving on Music’, an organisation which supports music education and promoting local and emerging bands.
Mr Tony Kennedy has been Chief Executive of Co-operation Ireland since August 1992. Previously he has held the positions of Chief Housing Officer, Wakefield MDC (1983 —1992), Regional Director (North West), N.I. Housing Executive (1979 — 1983) and Area Housing Manager, Belfast, N.I. Housing Executive (1974 — 1979).Mr Kennedy graduated with at BSc Hon in Social Services and Technology, from Loughborough University, and an MSc in Public Policy, Planning and Administration, from the University of Ulster. He is married with three children. Mr Kennedy also holds the following positions: • Director: John Hewitt Society • Deputy Director: Ulidia Housing Association • Board Member: Civitas • Board Member: Association of European Border Regions • Committee Member: Irish Platform for Peace and Reconciliation • Member: Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy
Mr William H C Montgomery, from Grey Abbey, is a Trustee of the National Museums & Galleries of Northern Ireland (MAGNI), and former chair of Opera Northern Ireland.  He is also a trustee of the Ulster Historical Foundation and a governor of the Linen Hall Library.  His background is in fine arts, especially Irish works and pictures.   He has been Sotheby's senior representative in Northern Ireland and Ireland for more than 20 years. He chairs the Weston Park Foundation in Shropshire (an English Heritage charitable body).
Professor Ian Montgomery , Professor Montgomery has been Head of the School of Art and Design at the University of Ulster since 2005. Prior to this appointment he was Director of the Research Institute where he was responsible for the development of the Art and Design Research Unit of Assessment. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, Architecture and Manufacture, a member of the International Society of Typographic Designers and a member of the Design Research Society. Professor Montgomery has declared no significant political activity.
Ms Sharon Marie O’Connor, from Lambeg, is Director of Cultural and Economic Development for Down District Council and is a member of the Northern Ireland Museums Council’s Board and the BBC Broadcasting Council for Northern Ireland. Her day job involves the development of towns and villages in Down, the development and management of local economic, social and cultural services. she has also been very involved in the development of major events and festivals.
Mr Joseph Rice Joseph is a senior partner in a firm of solicitors which has been in operation since 1986. He was appointed six years ago as a Deputy Resident Magistrate in Northern Ireland. He has previously been Chairman of Red Lead Arts in East Belfast, a member of St Agnes’ Choral Society and a member of the Circle Drama Group.
Professor Paul Seawright Paul is Professor of Photography at the University of Ulster and was formerly Dean of Arts and Media at the University of Wales, Newport, where he was awarded a personal chair in 2001. A practising photographer he has exhibited extensively and represented Wales at the 2003 Venice Biennale of Art.
Mr Brian Sore Brian is the Regional Director of the Royal Town Planning Institute. As the former Deputy Chief Executive of Greenpark Health Trust, he is a keen supporter of art in the health care environment and has worked with artists and the voluntary group ‘ArtsCare’ to support art in patient services and hospitals.
Mr Peter Spratt, from Belfast, is Managing Director of AndersonSprattGroup, Northern Ireland’s largest marketing services company. He has served on the boards of opera festivals in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, Ormeau Baths Gallery and was a founding member of the Riverside Jazz Foundation. He was Chairman of One Step Beyond (Northern Ireland), a cross-community youth charity majoring on peace and reconciliation. He was a semi-professional musician for over 20 years and his major interests include classical and contemporary music, the fine arts and literature.
Ms Janine Walker Janine is Co-Founder of Belfast based theatre company “Spanner in the Works”, Vice-Chair of Down Arts Forum – a voluntary group that promotes access to the arts in the Down District area and Board Member of ArtsEkta – an Indian and ethnic arts based organisation. Until April 2007, she was the Arts Manager at Arts & Business Northern Ireland and for three years was responsible for the New Partners programme. She is currently undertaking a Masters in Drama & Performance Studies at Queen’s University Belfast, whilst on a career break to spend more time with her family.

Mr Montgomery has declared political activity on behalf of the Ulster Unionist Party.