Major General Jo Chestnutt CBE (Chair)

Major General Jo Chestnutt CBE was appointed Director Personnel in January 2026 and became Chair of the Army Central Fund at the same time. He continues to serve as Master General of Logistics, a role he assumed in April 2024.

Jo has served on operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. His senior appointments have included Deputy Chief of Staff of the Field Army, Head of Defence’s Supply Chain, Operations and Movements (DSCOM), and command of 104 Theatre Support Brigade, 17 Port and Maritime Regiment, and a close support logistic squadron. His staff roles have included Head of Capability Plans in the Ministry of Defence, leading a strategic influence and information operations team in the Middle East, and contributing to the Core Army 2020 design team.

He holds a Bachelor of Science degree (First Class), a Master’s degree (Distinction), and a Diploma in Strategic Leadership and Project Management. He was appointed CBE in HM The Queen’s final Birthday Honours.

Colonel Ali Brown OBE

Ali Brown has held a portfolio of trustee and non-executive appointments since leaving the Army, including leading the Female Veterans Transformation Programme, funded by the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust and NHS England. She was Chair of Trustees for the WRAC Association from 2014 to 2021, where she led a significant change programme to ensure the charity was fit for purpose. She has also contributed to youth development through her work with The Prince’s Trust in Wales, where she introduced the Young Ambassador Programme.

Ali served in the Army from 1984 to 2010, with operational tours in Iraq, Bosnia and Kosovo. She continues to support the Armed Forces community through her role as Chair of the Cobseo Female Veterans Cluster, where she led a successful national funding bid to support the Female Veterans Transformation Programme.

Outside of her professional commitments, Ali has a strong interest in modern history, hill walking and large-scale gardening. She is in a civil partnership.

Brigadier Adam Fraser-Hitchen DL

Brigadier Adam Fraser-Hitchen has been a serving soldier, Regular and Reserve, for 38 years.  He has served on multiple operational tours over this period, has been fortunate enough to serve in NATO on three occasions, and is currently the Deputy Commander (Reserves) in the 3rd (UK) Division.  He is a Kings College Masters graduate of Defence Studies, a Chartered Engineer and Fellow of the Society of Operations Engineers (SOE).

As a former President of the SOE, he has led the organisation’s Trustee Board through transformation.  Outside of his Army role, he is the Chief Operating Officer for the UK’s Reserve Forces and Cadets Associations (RFCA).

Mr Robert Hughes-Penney

Robert is a Senior Investment Director at Rathbones, and has spent over 30 years managing global multi-asset portfolios. In addition, he spent several years on the Board, Executive and Management committees of the main operating company. Prior to starting work in the City of London he served in the Light Dragoons.

He is Chair of the CityUK’s Business Council, Chair of the Audit & Risk Committee at the Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment and on the Board of the Impact Investing Institute. He has served on the Boards of various charitable organizations and is an elected Alderman and Sheriff (2025-26) of the City of London.

Air Vice-Marshal The Honourable David Murray CVO OBE DL

David Murray served in the RAF for 33 years and his final tour of duty was in MOD as ACDS (Personnel and Training). In this appointment, he also led UK government liaison with military charities and veterans’ organisations. During his RAF career, David commanded RAF Halton, Winchester Army Garrison, Worthy Down Station and the Defence College of Police. His operational experience was gained in Northern Ireland, the Falkland Islands, Sierra Leone and with the UN in Bosnia. On leaving the RAF he became CEO of SSAFA before subsequently becoming CEO of the RAF Benevolent Fund. Currently, he serves as a Gentleman Usher to HM The King, is a Governor of Eastern Education Group and is a Deputy Lieutenant for Suffolk.

Brigadier Matthew Palmer

Brigadier Matt Palmer commissioned into the 1st Battalion The Duke of Wellington’s Regiment (West Riding) in 1998 and is still serving. His early years within an armoured infantry unit included operational tours to Kosovo and Iraq as well as significant periods of training on the open plains of Canada and Wiltshire. More recently, he has supported Army and partner nation readiness as a training specialist before taking on his current role at the heart of the Army’s recruiting efforts. Married with two teenage sons, Matt enjoys rugby, surfing and fly fishing.

Warrant Officer Class 1 Rebecca Sugden

WO1 Sugden joined the Royal Military Police in 1997, beginning a varied and operational career across the UK and overseas, including Cyprus, Germany and Canada. She served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and deployed on operations in Bosnia, Kosovo and Iraq. She also supported the Ministry of Defence in providing accurate information to investigations into the Troubles, ensuring integrity and transparency, and contributed to multinational policing work in Belgium.

In 2011, she transferred to the Army Welfare Service, where she has delivered specialist support to service personnel and families across a range of UK and international postings. Her work has helped strengthen wellbeing and resilience within military communities.

She is now the Regimental Sergeant Major of the Army Welfare Service, providing leadership and ensuring high-quality support for service personnel and their families.

Mrs Esther Thomas

Esther is the Army Families Federation’s Overseas Manager, and has been advocating on behalf of Army personnel and families for over a decade. As an ex-Reservist, she has experienced life in uniform and on deployment, which she has found beneficial when supporting others through the unique challenges and opportunities that ‘life in green’ can present.

With a background in social regeneration, economic development and best practice within the Third Sector, she is passionate about empowering others to improve their quality of life through public and private funding opportunities.

Esther is an Army spouse and mother to two teenagers. Having experienced multiple overseas postings together, they have a keen interest in travelling and taking part in adventure training activities. When time permits, she volunteers at a local school supporting pupils with walking challenges such as The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award and Ten Tors, so can often be found somewhere out on Dartmoor.

Caroline Crewe-Read (Director)

Caroline Crewe-Read has been Director of the Army Central Fund since December 2023. An Army spouse for over 20 years, she previously built a career in philanthropy, fundraising and governance across the arts, culture and heritage sectors. At Historic England and English Heritage she held senior leadership roles in programme and project management, and latterly in fundraising and partnerships, securing significant philanthropic support and shaping income generation within complex national organisations. Caroline holds an MA in Philanthropic Studies from the University of Kent.

Alongside her executive role with the Army Central Fund, she serves on the Grants Committees of the Army Benevolent Fund and the Armed Forces Covenant Fund Trust, is Acting Chair of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Wales, and sits on the Wales Committee of the National Lottery Heritage Fund.