Hugh Thornbery

Hugh joined Adoption UK as Chief Executive at the end of October 2012. Adoption UK is a national charity and membership organisation speaking on behalf of and supporting adoptive families. Adoption UK retained its Ofsted outstanding rating at its last inspection in 2013.
Hugh has worked in children’s services in the statutory and voluntary sectors for more than 35 years. Prior to joining Adoption UK Hugh was Director of Business Development at Action for Children, one of the UK’s largest charities. From 2007 to 2012 Hugh was responsible, amongst other duties, for the adoption and fostering agencies at Action for Children, leading a successful programme of improvement and modernisation.
Hugh has spoken widely on adoption in the media and on conference platforms and has worked closely with government. Hugh is currently a member of the Government’s Adoption Leadership Board, the National Recruitment Forum for Adoption and he chairs the Government's Expert Advisory Group overseeing the development and implementation of Adoption Support.
Hugh is a qualified social worker and youth and community worker and has an MBA in Public Services Administration.