Baroness Glenys Thornton, Senior Associate

Baroness Thornton is CEO of The Young Foundation, former Shadow Equalities and DCMS Minister in the House of Lords, and a former Government Health and Equalities Minister. She has long supported the development of social enterprise. Baroness Thornton was founding Chair of the Social Enterprise Coalition (UK), and for many years she was a board member of Social Enterprise London and a trustee of two social enterprises (Fifteen, Training for Life), as well as many charities. She supports the work of the Social Economy Alliance.

She is currently the Hon Secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Group for Social Enterprise, which she founded in 2001, and is a life long member of the Co-operative movement.

Prior to joining the Government in 2008, Baroness Thornton ran her own communications consultancy. She has worked with the senior management teams of many social enterprises, voluntary organisations and education institutes, providing support in the areas of communications, marketing and leadership. She is currently a Governor of the London School of Economics.