Helen Smith
Helen Louise Smith (b. July 1976) was Managing Director of SVR(H) and General Manager of the Guarantee Company on between 2019 and 2023, in succession to Nick Ralls. She was born in Yorkshire.
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Prior to the SVR
Helen was previously Deputy Director at the Tank Museum, Bovington, Dorset. Her earlier roles were as General Manager at The Fusilier Museum in Bury and Operations Director at the Magna Science Adventure Centre in Rotherham.[1]
She graduated in 1997 from the University College of Ripon and York St John as a Bachelor in Communication Arts, and in 2001 obtained a Post-Graduate Diploma in Management from the University of Huddersfield[2].
At the SVR
As with her predecessor, the new General Manager’s arrival was followed by several serious events, in this case Storm Dennis and severe flooding, the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic which coincided with a major project at Falling Sands Viaduct, and landslips at Sterns and Alveley Woods. From 2022 the Railway, like other attractions, faced drops in visitor numbers made worse by an economic downturn and cost-of-living crisis.[3]
In 2020 she became an SVR(H) director, the first woman to do so. In 2021 she was confirmed as managing director, taking complete responsibility for the safe operation of the Railway, its financial health and future growth. She left in February 2023 to become chief operating officer at St Aubyn Estates, helping to look after St Michael’s Mount.[4]
Helen steered the SVR through the pandemic, ensuring it secured substantial government support and emergency grant funding. She oversaw the reopening of the Railway in very changed circumstances with the country still in partial lockdown. During her leadership the Railway won a national VisitEngland excellence award for Resilience and Innovation[3].