Sir Christopher William Kelly,
KCBThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(born 18 August 1946) is a former senior
British Civil ServantHer Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as the Home Civil Service, is the permanent bureaucracy of Crown employees that supports Her Majesty's Government - the government of the United Kingdom, composed of a Cabinet of ministers chosen by the prime minister, as well as the devolved...
who is currently the Chairman of the
Committee on Standards in Public LifeThe Committee on Standards in Public Life is an advisory non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom Government.The Committee on Standards in Public Life is constituted as a standing body with its members appointed for up to three years.-History:...
and Chairman of the NSPCC.
Early life
Born in
BromleyBromley is a large suburban town in south east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Bromley. It was historically a market town, and prior to 1963 was in the county of Kent and formed the administrative centre of the Municipal Borough of Bromley...
,
KentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
, Kelly is the son of Dr. Reginald Kelly (1917–90), a former President of the Association of British Neurologists. He attended the independent
Beaumont CollegeBeaumont College was a Jesuit public school in Old Windsor, Berkshire, England. In 1967 the school closed. The property became a conference centre, and from 2008 an hotel.-History of the estate:...
. He studied Economics at
Trinity College, CambridgeTrinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
and the
University of ManchesterThe University of Manchester is a public research university located in Manchester, United Kingdom. It is a "red brick" university and a member of the Russell Group of research-intensive British universities and the N8 Group...
.
Civil Service career
His first senior appointment in the
Civil ServiceHer Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as the Home Civil Service, is the permanent bureaucracy of Crown employees that supports Her Majesty's Government - the government of the United Kingdom, composed of a Cabinet of ministers chosen by the prime minister, as well as the devolved...
started when he was appointed Private Secretary to the
Financial SecretaryFinancial secretary is an administrative and executive government position within the governance of a State, corporation, private or public organization, small group or other body with financial assets....
in 1971, a post he held until 1973. From 1978 to 1980 he was Secretary to the Wilson Committee of Inquiry into Financial Institutions. He held various other appointments in the
Civil ServiceHer Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as the Home Civil Service, is the permanent bureaucracy of Crown employees that supports Her Majesty's Government - the government of the United Kingdom, composed of a Cabinet of ministers chosen by the prime minister, as well as the devolved...
, including Director of Fiscal & Monetary Policy (1994–95). He was the Head of Policy Group in the
Department of Social SecurityThe Department of Social Security is the name of a defunct governmental agency in the United Kingdom.The DSS replaced the older Department of Health and Social Security, from 1988 until 2001, when it was itself largely replaced as a department of the Government of the United Kingdom by the...
from 1995 to 1997.
He was the
Permanent SecretaryThe Permanent secretary, in most departments officially titled the permanent under-secretary of state , is the most senior civil servant of a British Government ministry, charged with running the department on a day-to-day basis...
to the
Department of HealthThe Department of Health is a department of the United Kingdom government with responsibility for government policy for health and social care matters and for the National Health Service in England along with a few elements of the same matters which are not otherwise devolved to the Scottish,...
from 1997 to 2000, while
Frank DobsonFrank Gordon Dobson, is a British Labour Party politician who has been the Member of Parliament for Holborn and St. Pancras since 1979...
and later
Alan MilburnAlan Milburn is a British Labour Party politician, who was the Member of Parliament for Darlington from 1992 until 2010...
were the
Secretary of StateSecretary of State for Health is a UK cabinet position responsible for the Department of Health.The first Boards of Health were created by Orders in Council dated 21 June, 14 November, and 21 November 1831. In 1848 a General Board of Health was created with the First Commissioner of Woods and...
.
Post Civil Service career
A report written by him, and published in July 2004, looked into the agencies which dealt with
Soham murdererThe Soham murders was an English murder case in 2002 of two 10-year-old girls in the village of Soham, Cambridgeshire.The victims were Holly Marie Wells and Jessica Aimee Chapman...
Ian Huntley and why 'alarm bells' did not ring sooner that he should not be allowed to work with children.
Sir Christopher Kelly became the Chairman of the
NSPCCThe National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children is a United Kingdom charity campaigning and working in child protection.-History:...
in 2002, and in January 2005 became Chairman of the
Financial Ombudsman ServiceThe Financial Services Authority is a quasi-judicial body responsible for the regulation of the financial services industry in the United Kingdom. Its board is appointed by the Treasury and the organisation is structured as a company limited by guarantee and owned by the UK government. Its main...
.
On 5 December 2007, Kelly was chosen by the
British Prime MinisterThe Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the Head of Her Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister and Cabinet are collectively accountable for their policies and actions to the Sovereign, to Parliament, to their political party and...
Gordon BrownJames Gordon Brown is a British Labour Party politician who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 until 2010. He previously served as Chancellor of the Exchequer in the Labour Government from 1997 to 2007...
to become the Chairman of the
Committee on Standards in Public LifeThe Committee on Standards in Public Life is an advisory non-departmental public body of the United Kingdom Government.The Committee on Standards in Public Life is constituted as a standing body with its members appointed for up to three years.-History:...
.
In October 2010 he was appointed chairman of the King's Fund.
Recognition
In 2001, he was created a
Knight Commander of the Order of the BathThe Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
.
Personal life
He married Alison Durant in 1970 in St Marylebone and they have two sons (born 1974 and 1976) and a daughter (born 1980), and three grandchildren. He lives in north London. He is said to be a keen poker player.
External links