The British Equestrian Federation released the following statement:
It is with great regret that I can confirm that Clare Salmon has resigned from her position as Chief Executive and will be leaving the British Equestrian Federation.
I should like to thank Clare for her outstanding contribution to the BEF during the last year. Her leadership and vision for an inclusive, accessible and sustainable future for equestrianism were warmly welcomed and supported by the board. In particular, Clare was the driving force in reshaping the World Class Programme to ensure the confidence of our funding partners in granting ongoing funds.
In resigning, Clare has raised significant and serious concerns about culture, governance and the interaction of some of the Member Bodies. The board considers that there are legitimate questions to be answered so is commissioning an independent investigation, on which we will report in due course.
The board intends to take this opportunity not only to update our structure and processes to ensure that we are fully compliant with the UK Sport and Sport England Governance code, but also to review our cultural values and behaviour in the interests of a stronger Federation as a whole.
Both our funding bodies are aware of the situation. In the meantime we have asked Sarah Bunting, the BEF’s Head of Finance, to take over the role of accountable officer for the purpose of our funding. The board will be considering the process to put an interim CEO in place until Clare’s replacement is recruited.
There is a clear priority for the board to work with the Members’ Council to deliver the governance changes required by UK Sport and Sport England by 31 October 2017. We remain confident that commitment remains high and we will be successful.
I have every confidence in the abilities and professional skills of the BEF executive and staff team to continue their day-to-day work in the best interests of equestrianism. We are also fortunate to have a strong World Class Programme team in place, doing a great job for our athletes as they represent Great Britain.
Joanne Shaw
British Equestrian Federation
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