Annette Hennessy is an experienced CEO and leader. She has an extensive track record of collaborative, creative leadership in the criminal justice system and beyond, based on vision and compassion. She is committed to changing mindsets and perceptions about leadership as is demonstrated by her work with aspiring female leaders, and in supporting those outside of mainstream communities to discover their potential as leaders. Her achievements include developing a transformational approach as CEO to leading significant organisational change in Cumbria and Merseyside, leading the organisations successfully during a time of significant political scrutiny. Merseyside Probation Trust also won a national award for UK Excellence from the British Quality Foundation a first for anyone in the public sector. In 2014 she was awarded an OBE for services to public protection and reducing reoffending.
Since leaving full time work in 2015 she has started a new phase of her career continuing her commitment to transformational learning and leadership. For example she is a member of the Board for Blackburne House a pioneering centre for education and social enterprise in Liverpool, she is a Trustee of Coaching Inside and Out a creative organisation using life coaching to support individuals in prison and the community, and is an Associate of Amara Collaboration. This work includes the Amara Gardeners a group of individuals whose vision is to discover and increase the connections between aware leaders in the world. She is a qualified social worker, Probation Officer, and ILM 7 coach and has her own coaching practice. She is a walker and gardener and lives in the Lake District, Cumbria.