John Henwood, Trustee

John is a member Trustee who was a W.10 resident for 20 years, until 1968 when forced to relocate due to the Westway construction. He represented Kensington borough at football, ran and edited a schoolboy newspaper and won the Kensington schools poetry competition. He has been an Open Age member since it began. John's business career developed around the Gaming industry serving as Vice Chair of a leading trade organisation and overseeing significant administrative changes culminating in the inception of the Gambling Commission in 2012. He advised leading government figures in the lead up to that body's formation, as well as representing the UK's racecourse bookmakers in delicate negotiations with racecourse owners. He is the UK's senior racecourse bookmaker. He has been an ever present member of the Local history group for over 10 years, leading walks and talks specialising in London's hidden rivers. He helped form their Kensington history blog (northkensingtonhistories.wordpress.com) and regularly contributes. He recently advised on the C4 programme 'Before Grenfell'. He became an Open Age Trustee in November 2016 and, whilst his roots are firmly in W.10, is a fervent supporter of a nationwide expansion programme, believing Open Age should be available to all.