Melanie Waters, OBE

Melanie Waters OBE is a senior leader with a career spanning the commercial and charitable sectors. She now works as a Philanthropy Consultant and is a Trusted Advisor for Charles Park Family Office, having previously worked with The Royal Foundation of The Prince and Princess of Wales, developing future programmes.

Melanie was awarded an OBE in 2017 for services to the Armed Forces, reflecting her long-standing commitment to supporting service personnel, veterans and their families. She served as Chief Executive of Help for Heroes, having previously led The Poppy Factory, a charity providing employment opportunities for disabled veterans. Earlier in her career she held commercial leadership roles at the Automobile Association and The Unite Group in legal services, business improvement, external affairs, business development and operations.

Beyond her executive roles, Melanie has contributed to the wider armed forces charity sector as Vice-Chair of Cobseo (the Confederation of Service Charities) and as a Director and Commissioner of the Forces in Mind Trust, a major Big Lottery-funded grant-making body. She has also served on NHS England's Armed Forces Clinical Reference Group and sat on the governance board of Women in Defence. She is a Member of The Worshipful Company of Haberdashers, sitting on both the Charities Committee and the Charities Sub Committee empowering young people from every background to fulfil their potential.