Consultant physician Charles Mackworth-Young CVO becomes the 696th Prime Warden

Professor Charles Mackworth-Young, Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths' Company, 2023-24, Julia Skupny

• Charles Mackworth-Young CVO, a Consultant Physician specialising in Rheumatology, has become Prime Warden (chairs the Board) of the Goldsmiths’ Company.  

• Charles is the 696th Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company – a new Prime Warden is elected every year.

• Charles was Consultant Physician at Westminster and Charing Cross Hospitals and subsequently Professor of Practice at Imperial College, where his research focused on the origins of autoimmune diseases and the treatment of arthritis.

• He became a Freeman of the Goldsmiths’ Company in 1995, a Liverymen in 2003 and joined the Company’s Court of Assistants (Board-equivalent) in 2011.

Wednesday 17 May 2023 - The Goldsmiths’ Company is delighted to announce that Charles Mackworth-Young has taken office as Prime Warden, in succession to Mark Bridges (Lord Bridges). A Consultant Physician specialising in rheumatology, Charles’ career spans practice and research in medicine, from exploring the origins of autoimmune diseases to developing a national benchmark for the independent peer review of medical research. He was appointed CVO (Commander of the Royal Victorian Order) in 2020 for his work as Medical Director of King Edward VII’s Hospital, a charity with a focus on the care of veterans.

One of Charles’ goals as Prime Warden is to make the Company more attractive to all parts of the goldsmithing trade – especially those who might not consider joining its membership. The Goldsmiths’ Company has over 1,900 members across the UK from silversmiths, designer-makers and diamond mounters to teachers and tea merchants. In 2012, it established the Goldsmiths’ Centre, the UK’s leading charity for the training of goldsmiths.

Charles embarked on a career in medicine at the suggestion of a teacher. He read Medicine at Cambridge, followed by Archaeology and Anthropology. After attending St. Bartholomew’s Medical College in the City of London he held several junior doctor positions at centres in and around London, including the Royal Postgraduate Medical School. He spent two years in laboratory research at Tufts University New England Medical Centre in Boston. An interest in scientific discovery, as well as face-to-face practice, continued when he returned to the UK, and later during his time as a consultant at Westminster and Charing Cross Hospitals.

Charles went on to become Professor of Practice at Imperial College. His research explored the origins of autoimmune diseases and the treatment of arthritis, helping define a new syndrome. He also has a particular interest in medical education and in ethics, establishing at Imperial College, and still running, a nationally recognised system for the independent peer review of clinical research proportionate to the risks of participation in a trial.

Other roles have included Medical Director at King Edward VII’s Hospital, London, Master of the Society of Apothecaries and Commissioner at the Royal Hospital Chelsea, the home of the Chelsea Pensioners.

Charles became involved in the Goldsmiths’ Company in 1995, becoming a Freemen in that year. In 2003, he became a Liveryman, going on to join the Court of Assistants (Board-equivalent) in 2011. He has taken a particular interest in the educational and charitable activities of the Company’s Charity.

Independent work as a doctor continues, as does his love of music. In his spare time, Charles composes music and still plays the trombone in orchestras and in the brass group he started as a student. He also has an enduring love for the arts and gold and silverware, passions which have taken him and his wife all around the world.

Commenting on his election as Prime Warden of the Goldsmiths’ Company and the year ahead, Charles said: “I hope that the breadth of experience I have gained from working with patients from all walks of life translates into my contribution to the Company. In the coming year I’m looking forward to helping develop a rolling programme focused on celebrating the Company’s heritage, while strengthening it for the future; increasing the impact of the work of the Goldsmiths’ Company Charity, which makes grants and donations of around £4m each year; and attracting more members into the Company from across the trade.

As with painting and music, the combination in gold or silver of brilliant craftsmanship and artistic inspiration is utterly thrilling and I feel particularly fortunate to be able to help support and promote this life-enhancing craft”.