Corporate Governance - About the Board
Teachers Building Society is a mutual organisation, with a Board of Directors elected by its members:
Kevin Richardson
Chairman
Kevin has been a member of the Board since 2003 and was appointed as Chairman in 2010. He has spent in excess of thirty years in the financial services industry and held senior positions with Liverpool Victoria and NM Schroders. Kevin is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, is a member of the Audit and Risk Committee and chairs the Board of TBS Financial Services Ltd. Kevin is also a Non Executive Director for Exeter Friendly Society. Kevin is a fervent supporter of mutuality and is keen to see the benefits of mutuality passed on to members through the products and services Teachers Building Society offers.
James Bawa
Chief Executive
James joined the Society in May 2002. James has considerable experience of the financial services sector, having previously been Chief Executive at Scottish Legal Life. Prior to that appointment, James held a number of senior management posts at Liverpool Victoria, Friends Provident and NM Schroders. James is currently a member of the FSA’s Regulatory Decision Committee. In his role as Chief Executive he has strived to implement best practices in order to reduce costs whilst increasing the levels of customer service and choice available to members. He is committed to Teachers’ Building Society remaining a mutual lender in a market place dominated by large multinationals.
Michael Percy
Non-Executive Director
Michael was appointed to the Board of the Society in April 2004. He has worked in the financial services sector for over 40 years, having been a director of Hill Samuel Bank in the 1980s, and currently works for the BNP Paribas Fortis Group in London. Michael is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, and is or has been a non-executive director of a number of different groups. Michael is particularly supportive of the Society’s role as a mutual organisation focusing upon providing competitive and high quality mortgage and savings products for its members and the educational sector, with an overriding objective of treating its customers fairly; as the Chair of the Society’s Audit and Risk Committee he takes a particular interest in the risk management activities of the Society to protect the interests of the Society and all its members.
Martin Reed
Non-Executive Director
Martin joined the Board in 2006 following close involvement with the Society as a member of the National Executive of the National Union of Teachers. Martin is currently seconded from his teaching responsibility as a middle manager within a large secondary school. With twenty seven years teaching experience, Martin understands the market needs of teachers. Martin has wide experience of working closely with the Society and a range of commercial organisations, having been Chair of the Union’s Membership and Communications Committee for six years, which provides services and benefits to teachers. It is crucial that the Society builds upon its strong and historic links with the education market. As President of the NUT and a senior member of the NUT Executive, Martin possesses sound understanding of budgetary decisions and control. He is a committed supporter of mutuality, and the fact that the members can continue to benefit from competitive investment and lending rates.
Roy Spragg
Non-Executive Director
Roy joined the Board at the beginning of 2009 after a career in the financial services sector, mainly as Finance Director. After 16 years with the Lloyds TSB group, Roy left to do a short stint with Ernst & Young before entering the mutual sector in 2002 as the Finance Director of Liverpool Victoria based in Bournemouth. He has now retired from his full-time executive role. Roy is an actuary by training and is currently a member of the Board of Bournemouth University. He is an enthusiastic supporter of mutuality and the benefits that membership can bring. He firmly believes that Teachers has a unique role to play in the financial lives of teachers and aims to bring his own financial experience to bear in the stewardship of members’ funds and interests.
Simon Gorham
Executive Director
Simon is the Society's Finance Director. He joined the Board in January 2003 but first came to the Society in 1987 having qualified as a Chartered Accountant with a large firm of accountants. Since joining Teachers he has been responsible for the development of the Finance, Treasury and IT functions and is committed to ensuring that the Society provides the best possible benefits to members while safeguarding its strong financial position. His commitment to the education sector has been demonstrated throughout his career and he brings to the Board considerable experience of the organisation and of the building society movement. He is currently Chair of the Audit Committee of the Arts University College at Bournemouth where he has been a Governor since 2008. Like his fellow directors, Simon is firmly convinced that Teachers has a unique role to play in helping teachers and that this is best achieved by maintaining its mutual status.
Karen Flaherty
Executive Director
Karen joined the Society in 2007 as the Society's Solicitor and Secretary. She joined the Board in January 2009 at the same time as Roy Spragg was appointed to the Board. Karen qualified as a solicitor in 1997 after completing a training contract with Linklaters LLP and has worked principally in private practice since then, specialising in corporate and commercial law. In her role with the Society Karen is also responsible for the compliance function, human resources and the key risk control areas associated with the Society's lending. In her time with the Society, Karen has been an active participant in the executive decision-making process. As Karen tends to get involved on those rare occasions when things go wrong she is keen to ensure that customers are treated fairly and that the Society implements best practice when it comes to the treatment of its members.
