Fred Done appoints Joanne Whittaker as new Betfred chief executive

Fred Done has appointed a new chief executive at Betfred, with Joanne Whittaker set to take up the role next month.

Done, who turned 78 last Friday, is to remain as chairman of the bookmaker and told staff on Wednesday that he was "going absolutely nowhere".

Whittaker, 43, had been head of IT at Betfred's Warrington base before founding childcare voucher provider Fideliti in 2005, helped by an investment in return for a 25 per cent share in the business from Done. In the year to March 2019, Fideliti had turnover of more than £83 million and pre-tax profits of £1.7m.

Whittaker has also set up two further businesses backed by Done, a debt advice service called Angel Advance and loans company Workplace Finance.

More recently, Done invited Whittaker to examine a number of businesses he is involved in, setting up the Done Family Office as part of that process. She has also been a non-executive director of Betfred.

Fred Done is to remain as chairman of BetfredCredit: Edward Whitaker

Done told staff Whittaker's appointment was part of the succession planning at the business and that she would be working closely with chief operating officer Mark Stebbings and other members of Betfred's senior management team.

In 2012 Whittaker, who will take over as chief executive on April 6, said in an interview with the Manchester Evening News: "I want to be the female Fred Done."

She added: "I think he likes backing a successful project like mine because I'm young and we still get on really well. He's an amazing influence."

Done, who opened his first betting shop in Salford in 1967, took over the duties of chief executive at Betfred in 2016 following the departure of John Haddock.

In other betting industry news, William Hill announced on Wednesday morning they expected completion of their £2.9 billion takeover by Caesars Entertainment to take place on April 1.

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