Governance.

Alan Harris joined the Board in 2011 and was appointed as Chairman on 1 December 2017. Alan is a Chartered Insurer and a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute. He holds an MBA from City University Business School and is an alumnus of the Advanced Management Programme at Harvard Business School. Alan is the former Operations Director of NFU Mutual and former Chief Executive of Avon Insurance PLC. Alan is also Chairman of Stonebridge International Insurance Ltd and is a Governor and Director of Prince Henry’s High School Academy Trust

Board Committees: Chairman’s and Nominations (Chairman), Remuneration

Richard Norrington was appointed to the Board on 30 November 2016 and became Chief Executive on 1 December 2016. He is passionate about the Society’s social purpose and mutual values. Richard has extensive leadership experience in the financial services sector, in a career spanning over three decades. He spent 16 years with Barclays Bank PLC, and, more recently, ten years at Clydesdale & Yorkshire Bank where as regional director he had responsibility for the East of England area.

Board Committees: Chairman’s and Nominations

Paul Johnson joined the Society in June 2020. Paul was previously Head of Finance at Vanquis Bank for six years, having been at Citi previously for fifteen years in a variety of senior finance roles, including CFO of the UK Consumer business. Prior to that Paul held a number of financial controller roles including the broker subsidiary of Société Générale, and started his career at Deloitte. Paul is a fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants.

Qualifying as a solicitor in 2008, Rebecca acted as legal counsel within the financial services industry for over seven years before starting a family. She joined the Society in 2015 as society secretary with responsibility for board governance. She soon became Legal Counsel and then Chief of Staff, developing the Corporate Governance framework to include ambitious programmes on ESG, Diversity and Inclusion and Employee Performance. Rebecca joined the Executive as Chief Operating Officer in 2022.

Sian Hill joined the Board in April 2020. Sian has a mathematics degree from Oxford University and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Sian was at KPMG for many years including over twenty years as a financial services tax partner advising a broad range of financial institutions. She retired from KPMG in June 2018. Sian is a non-executive director of Cordiant Digital Infrastructure Limited (where she is the Chair of the Audit Committee and the Senior Independent Director) and of Yealand Administration Limited. She is also a Trustee and Chair of the Finance & Audit Committee and member of the People & Culture Committee of Place2Be, a leading UK children’s mental health charity.

Board Committees: Audit, Board Risk and Compliance

Sian Hill is the Chairman of the Trustees of the Ipswich Building Society Pension and Life Assurance Scheme

Elaine Lenc joined the Board in October 2019. Elaine is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers in Scotland. She has had a lifelong career in Financial Services and held senior posts at National Australia Group Europe. Laterly as Director, Customer Remediation but spanning IT and Strategic Change, Products and Marketing, Retail and Business Banking across four european banks. Elaine is also a governor at Delta Academies in North Yorkshire.

Board Committees: Board Risk and Compliance, Remuneration (Chairman)

Steve Liddell was appointed to the Board on 30 November 2017. He has a degree from Nottingham University and is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. He retired from Mazars LLP, where he was a financial services partner, in 2020. He previously worked for many years at KPMG and was the senior partner at the firm’s Ipswich office from 2002-06. He is a non-Executive Director of Samsung Fire & Marine Insurance Company of Europe Limited and Aspen Syndicate Management Limited. Steve lives locally and has over 30 years’ experience in working with regulated businesses.

Board Committees: Audit (Chairman), Board Risk and Compliance, Chairman and Nominations, Remuneration

Steve Reid was appointed to the Board in November 2016. Steve has spent his entire career in the Financial Services industry with a particular focus on Retail banking and Wealth Management. During this time he has held Executive roles with the Woolwich Building Society, Barclays Bank PLC, National Australia Group Europe and as CEO of Allied Irish Bank (UK). He is also a Non Executive Director at Wyelands Bank.

Board Committees: Chairmans and Nominations, Board Risk and Compliance (Chairman), Remuneration

Fiona Ryder was appointed to the Board in October 2018. Fiona is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts with over 25 years’ experience across the broadcasting, digital and commercial sectors. She was previously the founding CEO of instore marketing and communications company, The Cube Group before its profitable sale in 2006 and more recently the Managing Director of Archant’s local TV station for Norwich and environs. Fiona is an Executive Director at Bonza Music Ltd and TCD Media

Board Committees: Board Risk and Compliance, Audit

Fiona Ryder is Senior Independent Director and Whistleblowing Champion.