CEO Announcement

The Hygiene Bank is pleased to announce Edgar Penollar has been named Chief Executive Officer. Edgar has been acting as Interim CEO for the charity the last 6 months, as well as Treasurer and Trustee since May 2019.

Edgar has more than 20 years of senior management experience, most recently as Finance Director at Covea Insurance. He has worked for West Kent Mind and is a business buddy for Next Step Ready. Edgar lives in Sevenoaks with his wife and has four sons. He is a black belt in taekwondo, a qualified football referee, and enjoys golf, travelling and spending time with family.

“The Hygiene Bank is entering its next phase of development as we continue to experience increased demand, awareness and interest” said Tom Poynter, The Hygiene Bank’s Chairman of the Board. “As part of this transition into the next phase of our strategy, it is critical we have leadership that can sustain the right type of growth, build strategic partnerships and help us transform through operational excellence and design.  Edgar has a wealth of experience to draw up on and to lead us successfully in delivering our vision and strategic plan.  We are thrilled to have Edgar join us a CEO.”

On his role Edgar said: “I am grateful for this opportunity to work with the trustees, the Head Office team, and the wonderful volunteers of The Hygiene Bank in making a difference in communities across the UK . We are all acutely aware that there are more and more of us struggling to pay our bills, feed ourselves and our families, and stay clean. As a result, the demand for the services of The Hygiene Bank is ever increasing and I hope to extend our reach, create new conversations, and improve our processes to the benefit of those of us in need.”

Since working with the charity in his role as Interim CEO Edgar oversaw the release of our first Impact Report, the launch of our National Hygiene Week campaign and has streamlined our organisational infrastructure based on what we have learned from almost two years of operations. He will continue to steer our operations as we move into our third year as a charity, and we are thrilled to have Edgar on board.