Paul Ruddock

Sir Paul Martin Ruddock (born August 1958)[1] is a British businessman, philanthropist and patron of the arts. He is a former Chairman of the Victoria & Albert Museum and Chairman of the University of Oxford Endowment.[2][3]

Early life and education

Ruddock was born in Solihull, West Midlands. He attended King Edward's School, Birmingham from 1969 to 1976 and subsequently read Law at Mansfield College, Oxford, where he received a first class BA (Hons) degree and an MA (Hons). He is a Bancroft Fellow at the College.[4]

Personal life

He is married to Jill Shaw Ruddock, originally of Baltimore, Maryland; the couple have two daughters. Jill Ruddock is a Board member at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art and a trustee of Mousetrap Theatre Projects. She is founder and chairman of the Second Half of Your Life Foundation, author of the book 'The Second Half of Your Life'[5] and a former member of the Board of the Donmar Warehouse theatre.

Ruddock was knighted in the 2012 New Year's Honours List for Services to the Arts and Philanthropy. At the time of the award, some commentators called for the New Years Honours List to be made more transparent,[6] particularly where, as in the case of Ruddock, recipients are linked to political parties. Ruddock himself provided written testimony on the subject to a House of Commons Public Administration Select Committee, in which he advocated that the honours system explain the basis for each individual award.[7] Ruddock was one of 33,000 individuals to invest in film partnerships that were later contested successfully by HMRC.

Business career

Ruddock is a former CEO of Lansdowne Partners, an alternative investment management firm he co-founded in 1998. He retired from Lansdowne in March 2013.[8] He was a managing director and head of international business at Schroders & Co. Inc. (1984–1998) and was at Goldman Sachs from 1980 to 1984.

In April 2013, Ruddock was awarded an 'Outstanding Contribution' award for his contribution to the hedge fund industry at the HFM Week awards.[9] In November 2013 he was given a Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement award by The Compliance Register.[10] His wealth has been estimated to be about £270m. He is believed to have donated £570,000 to the Conservative Party between 2003 and 2011.[11]

In October 2015 the Chancellor of the Exchequer appointed Ruddock as a Commissioner of the National Infrastructure Commission,[12] an independent body that enables long-term decision making in UK infrastructure projects. The Commission is chaired by Lord Adonis.[13] In November 2016, Sir Paul stepped down from the Commission.[14]

Philanthropy and the arts

Ruddock is closely involved with numerous charitable institutions and is a noted philanthropist in the arts and in education.[15]

Ruddock served as chairman of the Victoria & Albert Museum from 2007 to November 2015. He was made an honorary senior research fellow at the Museum and is a trustee of the V&A Foundation.[16] He is also a former Chairman of the museum's Trustee Finance and Development Committees. He was the lead private donor for the renovation of the V&A's Renaissance and Medieval galleries, a £32m project and the museum's largest in more than 100 years.

At the British Museum, Sir Paul and Jill Ruddock funded the renovation of the European Medieval gallery. In March 2014 the British Museum opened a second gallery funded by the couple: The Sir Paul and Lady Ruddock Gallery of Sutton Hoo and Europe 300–1100, an early medieval collection that includes objects from the Sutton Hoo ship burial in Suffolk.[17] Sir Paul was appointed by the Prime Minister as a Trustee of the Museum in October 2016.[18]

In January 2011, Ruddock was appointed a Trustee of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, where he serves on the merchandise, acquisitions and external affairs committee.[19] He is also Co-Chair of the International Council.[20]

In collaboration with King Edward's School, Birmingham, Sir Paul and Jill Ruddock funded a new performing arts centre, which the couple formally opened in 2012.[21]

Ruddock is an ambassador for AfriKids, through which he has been involved in several educational and charitable projects in Africa. He has donated substantial funds and helped the charity connect with other donors.[22]

Ruddock is a Fellow of the Society of Antiquaries of London, a former Trustee of the Samuel Courtauld Trust and a former Chairman of the Gilbert Trust for the Arts. He continues to actively support the Courtauld Institute of Art.[23] His further charitable involvement includes commitments to the Donmar Warehouse and The National Trust.

In April 2014, Ruddock was appointed Chair of the World War I Cathedral Repairs Commission.[24]

Sir Paul is a Member of the J. Paul Getty President's International Council and a Member of the Bard Graduate Center's Advisory Board.[25]

Awards for philanthropy

Ruddock is the UK recipient of the 2014 Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award, established by the Montblanc Cultural Foundation to recognise patrons of the arts who have made exceptional contributions to artists and their work. Winners are chosen from a shortlist by an international jury of artists and art influencers. Past recipients of the award include the Prince of Wales, Russian maestro Valery Gergiev, American musician Quincy Jones, Italian architect Renzo Piano and Japanese artist Yoko Ono.[26]

In January 2015, Ruddock was appointed Chairman of the University of Oxford Endowment fund, following his appointment to its board in September 2014.[27]

In May 2015, Ruddock was made a "Chevalier dans Ordre des Arts et Lettres" for services to French art, awarded by the French Government's Minister of Culture.

In October 2015, Ruddock was given a Lifetime Achievement in Philanthropy Award by Spear's, the London-based wealth management, business and culture magazine.[28]

In April 2016, Ruddock was given an "Outstanding Patron" award by the Iris Foundation, an organisation created in 1997 to recognize scholars, patrons, and professionals who have made outstanding contributions to the study and appreciation of the decorative arts.[29]

In May 2019 he received an honorary doctorate (Doctor of Humane Letters) by Bowdoin College, Maine, for philanthropy and services to the arts.[30]

In July 2019 he received an honorary doctorate (Doctor of the University) by the University of Birmingham, UK, for philanthropy and services to the arts.[31]

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References
  1. "Paul Martin RUDDOCK". Companies House, Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 29 April 2019.
  2. "Trustees of the V&A". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 25 September 2012. V&A appointed: 3 May 2002; re-appointed: 3 May 2006. Appointed Chairman 2007; re-appointed 2011.
  3. Foster, Mike. "Oxford endowment appoints Lansdowne co-founder as investment chair". Financial News. Dow Jones. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  4. "Mansfield elects Paul Ruddock to a Bancroft Fellowship". Mansfield College News. Retrieved 25 September 2012. ...he owed to his time at Mansfield, which had given him opportunities in life that might otherwise not have been open to him.
  5. "Our Trustees". Mousetrap Theatre Projects. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  6. "Lansdowne Partners founder and Tory party donor Paul Ruddock defends knighthood". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 25 September 2012. Sir Paul, the co-founder of Lansdowne Partners, said that honours committees should give more information on why the award is given. He said it would then have been clear that the award was for his services to the arts and education
  7. "Public Administration Select Committee – The Honours SystemWritten evidence submitted by Sir Paul Ruddock". The House of Commons. April 2012. Retrieved 25 September 2012. I would recommend that more information is included in the New Year Honours List to explain the reasons as to why individuals are being honoured. In my own case, specific details of my contribution to cultural institutions in the UK may have served to dispel the notion that the award was related to political donations. Fundamentally, the honours system serves a purpose—to recognise individuals for their significant contributions to the society of this country. The more open and transparent the system is as to why these honours are granted, the greater the system will be respected and valued.
  8. Spence, Peter. "City A.M." Retrieved 11 July 2013. Lansdowne Partners, the hedge fund manager, has announced that Sir Paul Ruddock is to retire as chief executive to focus on his work in the arts and on charity work.
  9. "HFM Week". Sir Paul Ruddock collects top prize at HFM Week Awards. Retrieved 20 June 2013.
  10. "Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement – Sir Paul Ruddock". Wealth Briefing. Archived from the original on 13 April 2014. Retrieved 10 April 2014. Hall of Fame Lifetime Achievement – Sir Paul Ruddock. The career of this doyen of the hedge fund industry proves that it is possible to have a rock-steady, fully compliant business and still do better than all your competitors.
  11. "Sir Paul Ruddock to leave Lansdowne". Independent. 5 March 2013. Retrieved 3 October 2014.
  12. "Sir Paul Ruddock". Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 1 January 2016.
  13. "Chancellor Launches £100bn Spending Plan Body". Sky News. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  14. "Sir Paul Ruddock – GOV.UK". Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  15. Nayeri, Farah (27 July 2011). "Hedge-Fund Chief Ruddock Gives Millions to V&A, Shuns Spotlight". Bloomberg. Retrieved 25 September 2012. Paul Ruddock was eight when, on a visit to London's Victoria & Albert Museum, he came across a boarded-up room of sculpture casts. "I remember looking through a chink in the plywood, seeing Trajan's Column, and just being blown away"
  16. "Ware should the arts go for money?". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  17. "British Museum website". New gallery to open: Sutton Hoo and Europe AD 300–1100. British Museum. Retrieved 10 April 2014.
  18. "Trustee Sir Paul Ruddock". British Museum. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  19. "Paul Ruddock Elected a Trustee of The Metropolitan Museum of Art". Metropolitan Museum of Art. 26 January 2011. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
  20. "Paul Ruddock Philanthropy | Charity Projects & Donations". Paul Ruddock. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
  21. "About". The Ruddock Performing Arts Centre. Retrieved 25 September 2012. The Ruddock Performing Arts Centre is a collaborative project between King Edward's School and King Edward VI High School for Girls designed to support our high quality performing arts provision. The centre comprises a concert hall with a seating capacity of up to 400, a drama studio seating 120 and a dance studio. The centre is the most significant new building on the Edgbaston site since the two schools moved here in 1936.
  22. "Ambassadors". Afrikids. Retrieved 25 September 2012. their support has benefitted over 20,500 people across the Upper East Region. Paul has been instrumental in encouraging his colleagues to donate collectively to a wide variety of AfriKids' projects over recent years including Operation Bolgatanga (the Next Generation Home), football strips for four AfriKids children's centres, the AfriKids Outreach Vehicle and the AfriKids Blue Sky Lodge. In addition, Paul played a key part in the procurement of the AfriKids Medical Centre and remains engaged with and committed to the project to this day.
  23. "Research Projects gothic ivories project". Courtauld Institute of Art. Archived from the original on 18 April 2012.
  24. "First World War Centenary cathedral repair fund opens". Government of the United Kingdom. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  25. "Year in Review 2015–2016 Bard Graduate Centre" (PDF). Bgc.bard.edu.
  26. "Sir Paul Ruddock to Receive Montblanc de la Culture Arts Patronage Award". PR Newswire. Retrieved 2 July 2014.
  27. Bow, Michael. "Oxford Uni appoints Sir Paul Ruddock as investment boss". City A.M. City AM. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  28. "Winners of Spear's Wealth Management Awards 2015 announced". Spearswms.com. Spear's. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  29. "20th Annual Iris Foundation Awards Luncheon". Bard Graduate Centre. Retrieved 12 April 2016.
  30. "Bowdoin College Announces 2019 Honorary Degree Recipients | Bowdoin College". www.bowdoin.edu. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
  31. "University awards 2019 honorary degrees". University of Birmingham. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
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