Patricia Richards has been appointed Chief Executive of Automotive Skills, the body responsible for developing the Sector Skills Council for the retail motor industry. Richards takes up her appointment as Chief Executive designate on 1 October replacing Sheila McGregor when she retires next year.

Peter Johnson, Group Chief Executive of Inchcape plc and who takes over as the Chairman of Automotive Skills in October, said, "Patricia has the energy and commitment and just as importantly, she has the experience needed to drive the skills and training agenda in our next phase of development."

The Motor Industry Training Council (which recently merged with the Retail Forum to form Automotive Skills) has secured support across both industry and the education and training sectors to ensure that the motor industry's skills body is one of the first of 25 sectors to receive recognition, qualifying for a £1 million per annum grant.