Anti-poverty charity Toynbee Hall has revealed plans to grow its workforce by around 14% and the appointment of a new leader.
Rebecca Sycamore is leaving Toynbee Hall after three years as chief executive and Matt Dronfield, managing director of the charity’s debt free advice services, has been made her interim replacement.
Toynbee Hall, which employed 83 people on average in the year to March 2025, has recruited five new debt advisors over the past year as it expands a government-funded debt advice project delivered in English prisons.
It is also recruiting seven triage workers to support a phone line service funded by Macmillan Cancer Support to provide financial and other advice to people with cancer.
Sycamore said her decision to depart next month had come after a “great deal of thought” but that it felt like “the right moment to move on, and for the organisation to begin its next chapter under new leadership”.
The charity’s board plans to begin the process of recruiting a permanent CEO in due course.
Interim CEO to shape new strategy
Dronfield, who had a previous stint as acting leader, was cleared by an investigation last year into complaints from an anonymous group of employees about his social media activity and wider hiring processes.
The investigation commissioned by the charity upheld no claims made against Dronfield, while the Charity Commission also assessed concerns but took no further action.
Speaking about his appointment as interim CEO, Toynbee Hall’s chair Stephen Burns said: “Matt brings a strong combination of operational leadership, financial understanding and deep commitment to Toynbee Hall’s mission.
“The board was impressed by his ability to provide stability while also looking ahead to the organisation’s future.
“We’re also hugely grateful to Sycamore for her leadership over the past three years. She has guided Toynbee Hall through significant challenges and change while continuing to support our work alongside communities across east London.
“Toynbee Hall’s next chapter will build on a long history of combining practical support with community-led change.
“Matt will work with trustees, colleagues, partners and communities to shape a strategy that reflects the full breadth of our work, from frontline advice and community connection to research, policy and wider systems change.”
Dronfield said Toynbee Hall had an opportunity to “keep building services that reach people earlier, remove barriers to advice and respond to the realities people are facing today”.
“I’m looking forward to working closely with Rebecca and colleagues over the coming weeks to ensure a smooth transition, and to working with trustees, staff, partners and communities on the organisation’s next strategy and direction,” he said.
