By Isle of Wight Observer
Red Funnel has announced the departure of operations director, Leanna Lakes, who, since she joined the company in 2020, has worked remotely from her home in Kirkcaldy, Scotland. Reports suggest that she has seldom been spotted at the company’s Southampton headquarters in Bugle Street and even less so on the Isle of Wight. On one notable occasion, when two senior managers were away, Ms Lakes was reportedly unaware that a vessel was out of service when questioned about its return.
The news of her resignation was communicated by CEO Fran Collins yesterday morning. Her message to staff described Ms Lakes, without apparent irony, as having “spearheaded our focus on operations excellence.”
Ms Collins also claimed that the “replacement of our vehicle ferry fleet” was well underway. If true, it is a remarkable turnaround of the company’s fortunes in just a few days – as Arcus Infrastructure Partners, who have been in discussions about buying the company since February have just walked away from any potential deal, although they are still in touch with the company.
Expressions of regret from Ms Collins about her colleague’s departure were not echoed by Ms Lakes’ staff. Several employees contacted the IW Observer to say how pleased they were with the news.
Ms Lakes is set to join the RNLI as Chief Operating Officer and Director of Regions in the spring.
However, some of her staff members voiced concerns about the potential impact of her role there. One employee remarked, “The fear is what harm she could inflict on the charity’s operations and HR department.
“We’ve lost so many staff – it seems like rats leaving a sinking ship – but in this case nobody minds.”
Red Funnel has indeed faced significant staff turnover, a fact highlighted in an audit by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency—a detail that may cast her departure in a different light for the agency, compared to the delight of her staff.
It remains uncertain if Ms Lakes’ new role at the RNLI will allow her to continue working from her comfortable home in Scotland, where she is said to be overlooked by a painting of a highland cow above her fireplace.