New District Commissioner for Alderley and Knutsford

Will Burnham has been appointed to lead Alderley and Knutsford Scouts as District Commissioner from 1st September 2022.

Dave Hopley, County Commissioner said, “It is a wonderfully exciting time for Scouting in Alderley and Knutsford, as we pool together our District teams and executives across Alderley and Knutsford. In doing so we believe that we can better support the Scout Groups, Leaders, and Young People. I am delighted to have appointed Will Burnham as District Commissioner for Alderley and Knutsford. Will is an experienced Commissioner and people manager, combined with his enthusiasm and passion for delivering Scouting to young people, and I am confident he will do a fantastic job in taking the combined District forward to a bright future.”

“I’d also like to say a massive thank you to Neil McAleece for his outstanding leadership of Knutsford District over the past two years. Neil will be staying on as District Commissioner for Knutsford District until the merger is completed in September, after which he will be concentrating on delivering the adventure side of Scouting.”

Will is a Chartered Engineer working as a Project Engineering Manager delivering and supporting large complex UK infrastructure projects, he is also a member of the Chartered Management Institute and UK Chapter of the International Council for Systems Engineers.

Will’s Scouting journey started as a Cub, Scout, then Venture Scout. His first leadership role was as a Venture Scout Leader and over the years has been an Explorer Scout Leader and Assistant Group Scout Leader. He has held various Executive roles at both a Group and District Level including District Chairman. Will has also held a Deputy and most recently a District Commissioner role.

Outside of Scouting, Will enjoys time in the shed honing his wood work skills, with the aim one day to be good enough to build his own Canadian canoe.

On his appointment Will said, “This is an amazing opportunity and I feel very honoured to be appointed as District Commissioner. I look forward to building on both Alderley and Knutsford’s successes, integrating the teams, and further enabling outstanding Scouting opportunities to our young people and support to our adults.”

Neil McAleece said, “Will is a great leader with Scouting in his bones, he will be wonderful and I’m sure we will all enjoy working with him.”