The Canal & River Trust has announced the appointment of Ben Cottam as the director for its historic canals spanning Wales and the South West of England.

Ben will be joining the charity on August 11.

Ben comes to the Trust from the Federation of Small Businesses where he is currently head of Wales. As Wales' largest business membership body, Ben has led the Federation's activity to grow its networks and partnerships, membership engagement and its advocacy activity as well as its engagement with Welsh Government, the Senedd and UK Government in Wales.

Before his current role, Ben was for eight years head of the Association of Chartered Certified Accounts in Wales. He is a member of a number of boards and groups including Welsh Government's Social Partnership Council and the Wales Productivity Forum.

Ben Cottam said: "Joining the Canal & River Trust is a privilege which marries my passion for heritage with my professional experience to bring together the wider community to help keep the network open and alive for boats and all who benefit from having access to nature on their doorstep.

"I look forward to meeting and spending time with colleagues and volunteers at the Trust and the boaters, towpath visitors and partners groups who share our passion for canals."

 Julie Sharman, chief operating officer at the Canal & River Trust, said: "We are delighted to welcome Ben to the Canal & River Trust and look forward to him starting this summer. The navigable canals in our care deliver so much to communities; from jobs and tourism to wellbeing and access to nature.

"But these historic engineering monuments from the Industrial Revolution are old and need our charity to generate the support from wider society in order to give them the unrelenting care and maintenance that they need. Ben's professional experience together with his passion for heritage will drive that support so that we can keep the network alive for this and future generations."

In his spare time, Ben is a keen runner, participating regularly in half marathons around the UK and is a volunteer event director at a local Parkrun event. He has an interest in archaeology and industrial heritage and has taken part in a number of archaeological digs.