Peter Gaines has been appointed chairman of the youth hostelling charity YHA.
He replaces Chris Darmon who retired as chairman earlier this year following the end of an eight-year tenure.
Gaines, who was previously vice chair of the charity, has been a Trustee of YHA England and Wales since 2012 and a member for more than 40 years.
"YHA is doing well, but this is no coincidence," he said.
"The YHA Board, Executive, Councils and members are now working more collaboratively than ever and we have great, enthusiastic staff who are enabling us to build a platform for success.
"We have a substantial investment plan going forward which I want to be more ambitious, bringing the entire network to a standard we can all be proud of as fast as possible."
Around £31 million has been invested in the 140-strong YHA network of properties during the last five years.
"In my role as chair I want to increase YHA’s association with the corporate sector and develop mutually beneficial partnerships to enable us to look further down the road in our investment plans," Gaines added.
