We are proud to announce that our former Chief Executive Ian Merrill has been awarded the honour of Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in The King’s New Year Honours List 2026, recognising his outstanding contribution to rehabilitation services and his work across the criminal justice and charity sectors.
OBEs are awarded in recognition of significant contributions in a range of fields, including charitable work. Ian has dedicated 30 years to the charity sector, serving in roles including volunteer, executive, trustee and consultant. His work has spanned drug and alcohol misuse, homelessness, mental health and criminal justice.
Ian was Chief Executive of Shannon Trust for almost five years. During his tenure, he led the organisation through a period of significant growth and impact, taking its programmes to the next level and establishing key partnerships across the sector.
Reacting to the news, Ian said: “I am very pleased to be awarded this honour and see it as recognition of my contribution to the sector. However, I will be the first to say that it is also recognition for the team at Shannon Trust, and for the other teams I have worked with or led – it was very much a team effort. Becoming literate and/or numerate is a vital life skill, and together we helped many thousands of people achieve this.”
Key achievements during Ian’s time as Chief Executive include winning the Ministry of Justice Prison Leaver Innovation Challenge, which led to the development of Turning Pages Digital, and successfully delivering an ambitious new strategy during and following the COVID-19 pandemic, reaching thousands more learners.
Michael Wemms, Shannon Trust’s Chair of Trustees said, “Ian’s OBE is well-deserved and recognises not only his exceptional leadership while at Shannon Trust, but his commitment to creating positive change across the charity and criminal justice sectors. During his time as Chief Executive, Ian led the organisation with compassion and ambition, and we are incredibly proud of his achievements and delighted to see his contribution recognised in this way.”
Ian added: “I would like to thank everyone I worked alongside and the people that I had the privilege of serving. I thoroughly enjoyed my time at Shannon Trust and am proud that together we made a real difference.”
Congratulations to Ian from everyone at Shannon Trust on this very well-deserved honour.
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