Ronald Spence was appointed as a Trustee in April 2006. He was educated at Methodist College Belfast and at Queen’s University Belfast where he studied Modern History. He was a member of the Northern Ireland Civil Service from 1963 to 2001, including serving over seven years as Permanent Secretary of the Department of the Environment and the Department for Regional Development. He was heavily involved in initiatives in the areas of housing, urban regeneration, protection of the environment, tourism, equality, community divisions, regional planning, transport, cultural diversity and social exclusion.
He was Chairman from 1995 to 2001 of the Northern Ireland Partnership Board which delivered through local partnerships an innovative European Community Peace and Reconciliation Programme. He chaired from 1997 to 2002 the Northern Ireland Events Committee which promoted quality events to improve the region’s image and to bring the different parts of the community together. He was the joint chair of partnership boards that prepared long term vision statements for Armagh, Belfast, Craigavon and Derry/Londonderry.
Mr Spence is Chairman of the Probation Board for Northern Ireland and a member of the Northern Ireland Legal Services Commission. He has a keen interest in improving the performance of organisations and is a director of a consultancy company. He is a Director of Camphill Communities Trust NI. He chairs the Ulster Sports Museum Association, the Change Alliance and Blackwood Enterprises Ltd.