New boss to take helm at Acorns Children’s Hospice

Acorns Children’s Hospice, which has a base in Walsall, has announced that Trevor Johnson has been appointed as the charity’s new chief executive.

He will take up his position in March next year and replaces Toby Porter, who stepped down as Acorns CEO in September after six years in charge.

Mr Johnson will join Acorns from his current position as CEO of Katharine House Hospice, a charity which provides specialist palliative care for adults with life-limiting conditions across North-Oxfordshire and South-Northamptonshire.

He said: “I am absolutely thrilled to be appointed chief executive of Acorns, a charity which delivers such vital care and support to hundreds of children and families across the region every year.

“As someone who is very familiar with the hospice sector, I’m excited to be leading Acorns and helping the charity as it works towards its ambition to reach even more families with the care they need.

“Acorns is a place where families can build memories and encounter support they often didn’t even know was there, at a time when they needed it most.

"It’s an honour to join this cause, and I’m very much looking forward to working with the fantastic teams across the charity to take Acorns forward over the coming years.”

Acorns, which opened its first hospice in Birmingham in 1988, provides specialist palliative care to babies, children and young people across the West Midlands and Gloucestershire.

In the past year, the charity has cared for more than 700 children and supported more than 900 families, including the bereaved.

Mark Hopton, Acorns' chairman, said: “We are delighted to have appointed Trevor as our new chief executive. We undertook a rigorous selection process and my fellow trustees and I were extremely impressed by Trevor’s energy and experience and the way he demonstrated his commitment towards the charity’s vision.

“We very much look forward to welcoming Trevor to Acorns in March next year, to take Acorns forward as we build upon the first year of our three-year strategy and ensure we can continue providing vital care to any child and their family who needs us.”

Mr Johnson grew up in East London and Essex, and began his career in retail with a number of leading brands.

In 2010 the opportunity arose for him to move to the charity sector, joining Havens Hospices in Essex as director of trading.

Over time, he expanded his remit, becoming director of people at the charity, achieving the Investors in Volunteers accreditation in 2015 and the Queen’s Award for Volunteering in 2017.

After a spell of seven months as acting CEO in 2019, he became director of people and income generation before accepting the role of CEO at Katharine House Hospice in Banbury, Oxfordshire, in March 2021.

He lives in Worcestershire with his wife of 24 years and a cat called Bo.