Claire Ellen Horton (born 20 May 1962) is a British executive and charity worker. Since January 2021 she has been Director General of the

Commonwealth War Graves Commission The Commonwealth War Graves Commission (CWGC) is an intergovernmental organisation of six independent member states whose principal function is to mark, record and maintain the graves and places of commemoration of Commonwealth of Nations m ...

(CWGC), the body responsible for the care and upkeep of the graves and memorials of 1.7 million men and women of the Commonwealth Forces, who died in the first and second World Wars. CWGC operates in 23,000 locations across 153 countries. Previously she was the chief executive officer of

Battersea Dogs & Cats Home Battersea Dogs & Cats Home (now known as Battersea) is an animal rescue centre for dogs and cats. Battersea rescues dogs and cats until an owner or a new one can be found. It is one of the UK's oldest and best known animal rescue centres. It w ...

(2010–2021), chief executive of the University of Warwick Students' Union (2002–2008) and the

chief operating officer A chief operating officer or chief operations officer, also called a COO, is one of the highest-ranking executive positions in an organization, composing part of the " C-suite". The COO is usually the second-in-command at the firm, especially if ...

of the

Variety Club of Great Britain Variety, the Children's Charity is a charitable organization founded in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1927. History On October 10, 1927, a group of eleven men involved in show business set up a social club which they named the "Variety Club". On ...

(2008–2010). Horton sits as a non-executive director of The Animal Health and Welfare Board for England (born 2014), the body responsible for strategic animal health and welfare policy, and oversight of implementation in relation to England, taking account of public health considerations. https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/animal-health-and-welfare-board-for-england-ahwbe She is the former chairman of the Association of Dogs & Cats Homes (ADCH), the UK Rescue sector's umbrella and membership body (2015–2021) https://www.adch.org.uk In 2015 Horton was made an honorary Doctor of Laws (DLaws) by Roehampton University in recognition of her work nationally, to raise the standards of animal welfare and services to the community https://cqual.org/cq-en/news-13508-Battersea-chief-executive-receives-honorary-doctorate In 2016, she was named Charity Chief Executive of the Year at the ''Third Sector'' Awards in recognition of her role in turning around Battersea from an operating deficit, and increasing volunteers and foster careers. In 2017 she was named UK Director of the Year, in the coveted IoD Director of the Year awards. Horton took home the Public & Non Profit Director award, as well as winning the overall national, Director of the Year title. Horton's key area of work is creating and building partnerships and strategic alliances, focusing on business turnaround, income generation, organisational growth and development. She works with Government, Ministers and multiple stakeholders from the public, private and third sectors on major change and innovation projects and is recognised as one of the top business leaders in her field. Horton was appointed

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established ...

(CBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for services to animal welfare. That same year, she was also appointed Director-General of the

. Horton received an Honorary Silver Medal of Jan Masaryk from the Czech Republic Ambassador at the Czech Embassy in London in July 2021.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Horton, Claire 1962 births Living people British chief executives British women chief executives British charity and campaign group workers Alumni of Warwick Business School Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Recipients of the Silver Medal of Jan Masaryk