Martin Dove appointed as Master of the Leathersellers

Martin Dove has been appointed as Master (Chair) of the Leathersellers. Working in or for the public sector for nearly 40 years, Martin now helps public sector leaders successfully deliver transformational projects from railways and defence to health and social care.

He is a Review Team Leader and Associate of the new National Infrastructure and Infrastructure Authority and works with Parliament, devolved governments and other departments and agencies to help create, plan, and co-ordinate approaches and major projects for a more sustainable future. As Martin says: “I’ve always been interested in how to strengthen organisations so that they can become self-reliant, can trust their judgement, and fulfil their ambition to achieve public good.”

Martin qualified at PriceWaterhouseCoopers before going on to work for the Commonwealth Development Corporation and the NHS. Career highlights range from creating the Ngapani Coffee Estate in Malawi and setting up a venture capital company in Thailand to leading assurance reviews of the Elizabeth Tower in Westminster Palace. The latter connects to his family’s building roots, with Dove Brothers engaged in building projects for the Leathersellers and the City of London for over two hundred years.

With these deep connections to the built environment of the City of London, and St Helen’s Place, home of the Leathersellers, Martin’s focus of ‘Building Resilient Futures’ reflects the importance of this heritage in creating opportunities for the future.

“While my ancestors recognised the immediate permanence of bricks and mortar, nothing is ever truly built,” says Martin “everything needs maintaining with the future in mind; we are always dealing with the process of how to respond to change, mitigating risk, and approaching uncertainty with informed confidence – it’s this process that means we consider generational impact and which defines good stewardship, creating resilience and opportunity in equal measure.”

Martin’s year as Master, spanning 2025 and 2026, will mark 100 years since his great-grandfather, Frederick Lionel Dove, was Master of the Leathersellers, who while in office, paid for the renovation of the chapel at Leathersellers’ Close – almshouses located in Barnet, north London, that have been associated with the Leathersellers since the 16^th century.

Beyond being connected to the Leathersellers through the construction projects of Dove Brothers, Martin’s family has served directly as members of the Freedom and Livery since 1853. His grandfather was Master of the Leathersellers 70 years ago and his father was Master of the Worshipful Company of Tylers and Bricklayers.

Martin currently contributes to the governance of the Leathersellers’ Federation of Schools as a Member, having previously served as a Governor and Chair of the Finance and General Purposes Committee during that time.

Martin says, “I look forward to continuing the Leathersellers’ work of fostering opportunity through education and strengthening our commitment to advancing social mobility; supporting the leather industry; and increasing understanding and engagement with Adverse Childhood Experiences, the core charity grants programme of the Leathersellers’ Foundation.”