Gavin Kibble
Pro-Chancellor, distinguished friends, colleagues, graduands and guests. With Coventry’s rich history of community spirit and the sense of inclusion and cohesion the university seeks to enhance, it is fitting that the founder and director of one of the city’s biggest charitable groups – Gavin Kibble is to be recognised an honorary doctor of business administration.
As the founder of Coventry foodbank Gavin has helped build partnerships with 11 city churches which now distribute food to people in crisis. Since the project started six years ago it has fed around 50,000 people in Coventry – all in part thanks to Gavin’s considerable efforts which we recognise today.
Brought up in Barnett in North London, Gavin went to London School for Boys. His parents – a hairdresser and nursery school teacher, undoubtedly fuelled the passion for music which he took on at this time by becoming a chorister, and playing the piano and flue.
Gavin continued his studies and graduated with a Chemistry degree from Leeds University, before qualifying as a chartered management accountant. This led him to various jobs in finance, including a position in 2008 as the finance director of a multinational forklift truck company in Milton Keynes.
It was at this time that Gavin was called to help his brother over a debt issue that he began his journey which has led him to helping transform the lives of families across Coventry.
Gavin was so angered by the way his brother was being treated by the debt recovery industry that he decided to give up work and establish a centre to help others – eventually launching the Christians Against Poverty centre in Coventry in 2010. Some months later, he found the centre’s clients were facing a new issue as they were using all of the very little income they had to pay off debts and bills and nothing left to buy food for the family.
In 2011 Gavin became the operations director of Coventry Foodbank after setting up the first national food distribution centre in Coventry in partnership with the Trussell Trust. Under his leadership the network across the city has since grown to the highest number in the country and has provided almost 17,000 emergency food parcels to people in crisis, as well as directing families to vital support and advice services.
Alongside the significant resource for food relief, Gavin has worked with the government’s Feeding Britain programme on broader aid schemes, and in 2014 he was awarded the Good citizen award by Coventry City Council.
In 2017, he started a clothes bank to help people who have no clothes to leave hospital in; have fled domestic violence; or need a suit for interviews or court cases.
Gavin also has close links with Coventry University working with the faculty of health and life sciences on projects to help alleviate food poverty though research and analysis of food waste.
The decision to focus on social projects was not a new on for Gavin, having been a Christian all his life and always dedicating time to helping others during his working life. He has been married to his wife, Vivienne for 30 years and together they manage two ballet schools in Solihull and Warwickshire.
They have three grown up children and are awaiting their first grandchild. Gavin’s love of music continues and he enjoys playing the keyboard and flute in his church. In recognition of his outstanding contribution to Coventry’s community and families in need in so many areas, Coventry University, by decision of the Academic Board, has the privilege of conferring the Degree of Doctor of Business Administration, honoris causa, on Gavin Kibble.