Shakespeare's Globe Appoints First Ever Chief Impact Officer

Shakespeare's Globe has appointed its first Chief Impact Officer, Lottie Birdsall-Strong. Following a rigorous process, with hundreds of applicants from a wide diversity of industries, Lottie will be joining the Globe in March this year. A senior leader in strategy, data, and social return on investment, Lottie has more than a decade of experience operating at executive and board level across sport, charity and public policy.

She has led national strategies at both the England & Wales Cricket Board (ECB) and The Football Association (FA). At The FA, she played a central role in overseeing the distribution of approximately £1 million per week into grassroots football, ensuring funding decisions were driven by evidence, equity and long-term impact. She pioneered The FA's first Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework, quantifying the social and economic value of grassroots football and demonstrating how participation contributes to wellbeing, inclusion and community cohesion at scale. This work directly influenced record-breaking investment into grassroots football, shifting funding conversations from cost to value creation.

In cricket, Lottie has overseen programmes reaching over half a million people annually, leading a national youth strategy delivered across England and Wales. Nationally, her work has demonstrated £298 million in annual wellbeing value generated through youth participation. Alongside her executive roles, Lottie holds board-level positions within major charitable foundations, advising on strategy, women and girl's engagement and development, and data.

Stella Kanu, CEO of Shakespeare's Globe, has said: "From the very outset, Lottie stood out, not just for her strategic clarity, but for the unique warmth and leadership she brings to every room. Lottie's career has taken her from the pitch to purpose: from playing women's football with Arsenal through their academy, and pioneering Impact and Social Return on Investment work at The Football Association, to leading impact and youth strategy at the England & Wales Cricket Board, where she broadened access to sport for tens of thousands of young people.

Across her career to date, she has combined big ideas with a grounded sense of what's possible. This values-led appointment will elevate the Globe's vision, setting a benchmark for culture, where artistic ambition, evidence, equity and impact are powerfully aligned. We couldn't be more excited to welcome Lottie to the Globe and to see the creative impact she will help us unlock next.

This new leadership role ensures the Globe is committed and able to share our constantly evolving and long-term impact on the world around us."

Michelle Terry, Artistic Director of Shakespeare's Globe, has said: “We know engagement in the arts is a human right for all, but it's still treated as a luxury for the few. In her clarion call book ‘Art Cure', Daisy Fancourt reminds us that in this deeply troubled world the arts might not be the only answer, but they can certainly be “part of the solution and one that we could be harnessing much more.” The appointment of the incredible Lottie is the beginning of us harnessing and articulating the powerful but often underrated impact theatre can have on people's lives: not with empty platitudes but with demonstrable evidence of why engagement and investment in the arts is not a luxury, but a valuable human right.”

Lottie Birdsall-Strong has said: “It is a true honour to join Shakespeare's Globe as its first Chief Impact Officer. The Globe is an organisation where history meets possibility, and I will ensure every effort maximises value creation for the Globe and the audiences it serves."

Lottie joins a directorate of nine executive leaders at Shakespeare's Globe, including:

• Lotte Buchan (Executive Director of Theatre)
• Amy Cody (Director of Development)
• Ben Cooper-Melchiors (Chief Operating Officer - moving from interim to permanent)
• Lucy Cuthbertson (Director of Education, Learning)
• Sean Holmes (Associate Artistic Director)
• Michelle Terry (Artistic Director)
• Dr. Will Tosh (Director of Education, Higher Education & Research - moving from interim to permanent)
• Becky Wootton (Director of Audiences)
• Tonye Vianana (Interim Finance Director)

Biography

Lottie Birdsall-Strong is a senior leader in social impact, strategy and investment, with more than a decade of experience operating at executive and board level across sport, charity and public policy. She is known for turning purpose into measurable value, designing strategies that deliver large-scale social outcomes while strengthening organisational performance.

Lottie has led national strategies at both the England & Wales Cricket Board and The Football Association, working at the intersection of community engagement, investment and policy. At The FA, she played a central role in overseeing the distribution of approximately £1 million per week into grassroots football, ensuring funding decisions were driven by evidence, equity and long-term impact. She pioneered The FA's first Social Return on Investment (SROI) framework, quantifying the social and economic value of grassroots football and demonstrating how participation contributes to wellbeing, inclusion and community cohesion at scale.

This work directly influenced record-breaking investment into grassroots facilities, shifting funding conversations from cost to value creation. She has led the creation of impact frameworks that have been used to inform national strategy, board decision-making and public accountability, and have supported participation growth across nations, including women and girls, lower socioeconomic communities and underrepresented audiences.

In cricket, Lottie has overseen programmes reaching over half a million people annually, leading a national youth strategy delivered across England & Wales. Using data-led approaches, she has helped organisations innovate processes, products and investment to achieve record-breaking outcomes. Nationally, her work has demonstrated £298 million in annual wellbeing value generated through youth participation.

Alongside her executive roles, Lottie holds board-level positions within major charitable foundations, advising on strategy, women and girl's engagement and development, and data. She is trusted to operate in complex stakeholder environments from ministers and boards to grassroots organisations, and is known for translating complex data into compelling and socially relevant human stories.

At her core, Lottie is a purpose-driven, hands-on leader who believes social impact, financial sustainability and ambition are strongest when aligned.