Sir Peter Bazalgette appointed as RCA Pro-Chancellor & Chair of Council

Sir Peter, a leading figure in the media and creative industries, will join the RCA Council in October 2021, before taking up the role of Chair on 1 March 2022. Sir Peter has served as ITV’s Chair since 2016 and has held a number of high-profile roles in the creative industries, including Chair of Arts Council England, non-executive board member of UK Research and Innovation, non-executive director of the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, President of the Royal Television Society and Deputy Chair of the graduate National Film and Television School. In addition, Sir Peter led an independent review into the UK’s creative industries as part of the Government’s Industrial Strategy in 2017.

Sir Peter will succeed Baroness Gail Rebuck DBE who has been in the role since 2015, after over a decade on Council. Baroness Rebuck said: 

The Council was unanimous in welcoming the appointment of Sir Peter Bazalgette from an exceptional field of candidates.  I will be handing over the baton to Sir Peter at a pivotal time for the RCA, as it settles into its new Battersea campus, and I am sure he will be as inspired as I have been by the creativity and innovation of RCA students whose entrepreneurial spirit and impact on the world will be more sought after than ever.  Sir Peter’s depth of experience and passion for the creative industries will ensure the RCA continues to grow and flourish’. 

Commenting on his appointment, Sir Peter said ‘The RCA sits at the sweet spot for the creative industries: where art and design with flair meet cutting edge technologies. Pre-Covid the creative industries sector was worth 6% of the UK's economy and was growing three times as fast. This is the sector whose brilliant design ideas will help every other sector. And this is the sector which won't just fuel growth and jobs, it'll also improve and enrich lives. I look forward to helping the RCA maintain its world-leading status and to nurture the next generation of talented rainmakers.’

Sir Peter joins the RCA at an exciting time in its 180+ year history. The RCA has been ranked as the world’s leading art and design university for six consecutive years and will be welcoming research faculty and students next year to its new flagship campus in Battersea designed by Herzog & de Meuron. The new Battersea Campus will enable computer scientists, writers and curators, robotics engineers, sculptures, product designers and painters to collaborate and advance new technologies and designs. The campus will also enable the RCA to deliver transformational experiences for students and ensure the UK continues to lead the world in art and design.

Dr Paul Thompson, Vice-Chancellor of RCA said: ‘Sir Peter has been a champion of the creative industries for decades, working tirelessly and eloquently to highlight the value of arts and culture to the UK’s cultural and economic fabric. There has never been a more important time for this, as the country plans its build back from the profound effects of the pandemic and as we support our students to tackle current and future global challenges. The RCA is really fortunate to have such eminent figures as Baroness Gail Rebuck and now Sir Peter Bazalgette lead our Council.’