Irene Hays
{{Promotional|date=April 2025}}
{{short description|British businesswoman and former civil servant}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Use British English|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox person
| honorific-prefix = Dame
| name = Irene Hays
| honorific_suffix = {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|DBE|DL}}
| image =
| caption =
| birth_name = Irene Lucas
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1954|02|04|df=y}}
| birth_place = Gosforth, England
| death_date =
| death_place =
| education =
| occupation = Businesswoman
| networth =
| title = Chair & owner, Hays Travel
| term = 2009–present
| predecessor = John Hays
| successor =
| boards =
| spouse = {{marriage|John Hays|1997|2020|end=d}}
| children = 2
| website =
}}
Dame Irene Hays {{post-nominals|country=GBR|size=100%|DBE|DL}} (née Lucas; born 4 February 1954) is a British businesswoman and former civil servant. She is the owner and chair of Hays Travel, the largest independent travel agent in the UK, which she jointly owned with her husband John Hays until his death in 2020.
Early life
Hays was born Irene Lucas in Gosforth on 4 February 1954 and grew up in Ashington, the daughter of Vincent and Isabelle Lucas.{{cite encyclopedia |entry=Lucas, Irene, (Mrs John Hays) |encyclopedia=Who's Who |doi=10.1093/ww/9780199540884.013.U247160 |title=Lucas, Irene, (MRS John Hays), (Born 4 Feb. 1954), private consultant, since 2011; Chair, Hays Travel Group, since 2011; Senior Adviser, Newton Europe, since 2011 |date=2008 }}
Career
Hays worked in local government, rising to the position of chief executive of South Tyneside Council and Sunderland City Council.{{cite news |last1=Ford |first1=Coreena |title=Meet the couple behind Hays Travel as they offer hope to thousands of Thomas Cook staff |url=https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/meet-couple-behind-hays-travel-17057386 |accessdate=11 October 2019 |work=Chronicle |date=9 October 2019}} She was later an advisor to Ministers and Secretaries of State in Whitehall and served as a Permanent Secretary.{{cite web |title=Irene Lucas CBE |url=https://www.thersa.org/events/speakers/irene-lucas-cbe |website=RSA |accessdate=11 October 2019}} In 1980, her late husband John founded Hays Travel in the back of his mother's children's wear store in Seaham, Durham.{{cite news |last1=Davies |first1=Rob |title='We're no country bumpkins': Meet the couple who bought Thomas Cook |url=https://www.theguardian.com/business/2019/oct/11/were-no-country-bumpkins-meet-the-thomas-cook-buyers |accessdate=11 October 2019 |work=The Guardian |date=11 October 2019}} Irene now owns the majority share.{{cite web |title=Hays Travel Limited |url=
https://uk.globaldatabase.com/company/hays-travel-limited#div_ownership |accessdate=18 September 2020 |work=Global Database}}
She has been the chair of the Hays Travel Group since 2009. She was a non-executive board member at the Department for Education between November 2018 and December 2021 and was also chair of the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) management board.{{cite news |title=ESFA welcomes new Management Board Chair Irene Lucas CBE. |url=https://www.fenews.co.uk/press-releases/212-executive-appointments/24996-esfa-welcomes-new-management-board-chair-irene-lucas-cbe |accessdate=11 October 2019 |work=FE News |date=30 January 2019}} Irene was a board member of Sport England and The Academy for Sustainable Communities and a director general at the Department of Communities and Local Government. {{Cite web|url=https://www.gov.uk/government/people/irene-lucas|title=Irene Lucas|website=GOV.UK}}
Under her leadership, the company has expanded significantly, operating nearly 500 retail outlets nationwide and generating a turnover of approximately £423.5 million in the fiscal year ending April 2023, with gross sales reaching £2.2 billion.{{Cite web|url=https://www.ft.com/content/a8756717-82fe-4d54-867d-08cf326387cb|title=Hays Travel hunts for deals to expand presence on UK high street|first=Eri|last=Sugiura|date=9 October 2024}}
Hays has been instrumental in driving Hays Travel's success, notably leading the acquisition of Thomas Cook's retail operations in 2019, saving over 2,000 jobs. {{Cite web|url=https://www.ttgmedia.com/news/the-story-of-hays-travels-thomas-cook-takeover-new-found-freedom-and-leading-from-the-front-49231|title=The story of Hays Travel's Thomas Cook takeover: 'new-found freedom' and 'leading from the front'|website=TTG |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241126011630/https://www.ttgmedia.com/news/the-story-of-hays-travels-thomas-cook-takeover-new-found-freedom-and-leading-from-the-front-49231 |archive-date=26 November 2024 |url-access=subscription }} Since then, Hays Travel has acquired five other businesses,{{Cite web|url=https://www.haystravel.co.uk/about-us/#timeline|title=Hays Travel | About Us | UK's largest independent travel agency - Hays Travel|website=www.haystravel.co.uk}} both retail and online. Hays Travel also carries out the back-office support services for 120 independent travel agencies across the UK.{{citation needed|date=April 2025}}
Honours
Hays was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2008 New Year Honours for services to local government and Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to training, education, and young people.{{London Gazette|issue=63218|supp=y|page=N7|date=31 December 2020}} and served as High Sheriff of Tyne and Wear from April 2023 to April 2024. {{Cite web|url=https://www.shieldsgazette.com/news/people/hays-travel-owner-dame-irene-hays-becomes-high-sheriff-of-tyne-and-wear-4098286|title=Hays Travel owner Dame Irene Hays becomes High Sheriff of Tyne and Wear|date=10 April 2023|website=Shields Gazette}}
In December 2018, she was awarded an honorary doctorate by the University of Sunderland.{{cite news |last1=Mayling |first1=Samantha |title=Irene Hays receives honorary doctorate|url=http://www.travelweekly.co.uk/articles/319004/irene-hays-receives-honorary-doctorate |accessdate=11 October 2019 |work=Travel Weekly |date=12 December 2018}} Hays has also been awarded an honorary MBA.{{cite news |title=Who are Hays Travel? The business success story as firm set to save 2,500 jobs with deal to buy 555 Thomas Cook stores |url=https://www.sunderlandecho.com/business/who-are-hays-travel-business-success-story-firm-set-save-2500-jobs-deal-buy-555-thomas-cook-stores-649526 |accessdate=11 October 2019 |work=Sunderland Echo |date=9 October 2019}} She was appointed a Deputy Lieutenant of Tyne & Wear in 2020.[https://www.thegazette.co.uk/notice/3530710 Deputy Lieutenant Commissions], thegazette.co.uk. Accessed 25 November 2022.
Personal life
In 1997, she married John Hays. They have one son and one daughter. John was the company's CEO. He died on 13 November 2020, after collapsing from cardiac arrest at the company's Sunderland head office.{{Cite web|url=https://www.sunderlandecho.com/news/people/hays-travel-founder-john-hays-dies-suddenly-doing-job-he-loved-3035420|title=Hays Travel founder John Hays dies after collapsing at Sunderland office while 'doing the job he loved'|website=sunderlandecho.com|accessdate=25 November 2022}}
References
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Category:British women business executives
Category:Civil servants in the Department for Communities and Local Government
Category:British Permanent Secretaries
Category:Dames Commander of the Order of the British Empire