Nathan Irwin FCA
Chief Executive
Nathan was appointed as Chief Executive in August 2019, having previously served as the Association's Chief Financial Officer for six years. Nathan was previously a director at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, specialising in financial services.
Rod Bramston BSc (Hons) MBA
Executive Director
Retail and Commercial
With over 20 years of experience at WPA, Rod leads the retail and commercial SME sectors. Previously, Rod was a marketing director at GE Capital, having earlier gained extensive international marketing experience with Procter & Gamble's Pharmaceutical Division in Australia, USA, Benelux and the UK.
Neil Davidson ACMA CMIIA
Chief People Officer
Neil has worked at WPA since 1994 and has held numerous positions, including the Head of Internal Audit, before taking over as Chief People Officer. Neil is also Chairman of the WPA Pension Scheme.
Mike Downing MSc MBA
Chief Technology Officer
Mike has over 35 years' experience across many areas of IT, and he has worked for WPA since 1999. He has also achieved recognition in the Top 250 UK IT Leaders for several years. Prior to WPA, Mike worked within Technology, Financial Services and Space Research, in the UK and the Netherlands.
Donna Eavis FCMA
Executive Director
Chief Actuary and Chief Finance Officer
Donna has been with WPA since 2000, firstly as the Finance Manager, then Head of Finance and more recently Chief Finance Officer. Prior to WPA, Donna worked in a number of finance roles around the UK including Debenhams, the University of Surrey and the Robert Gordon University.
Brian Goodman BSc (Hons)
Executive Director
Corporate
Brian has over 30 years of experience across a range of functions within WPA and is also Chief Executive of the Group's specialist healthcare administrator WPA Protocol Plc. Brian was a quantity surveyor in the construction industry prior to joining WPA.
Catherine Jones LLB
Head of Legal
Catherine joined WPA in 2021. She initially trained as a solicitor in England. She worked for a major international bank before being transferred to Australia where she lived for an extended period. Catherine has held General Counsel/Governance roles for fund management and financial services companies.
Charlie MacEwan MVO
Corporate Communications Director
Charlie's role is to raise awareness of WPA. He also leads the WPA Foundation promoting physical activity amongst the young across the UK and the WPA Charitable Foundation supporting parents in the South West. Before WPA, he worked for the Institutional Division of Gartmore Investment Management and was a soldier for 12 years.
Clare Sampson
Head of Operations
Clare joined WPA in 1998 and progressed to become a senior IT Manager for many years before joining the Leadership Team. Prior to working for WPA, Clare held Customer Service management roles with Sainsburys, Western Power Distribution and abroad.
James Searle
Executive Director
Chief Operating Officer
Jim joined WPA in 2016 as Chief Information Officer and then in 2018, he became Chief Operating Officer. Previously, Jim was a partner at the consultancy company Control Risks and, before that, an Officer in the Army.
Sharon Shier Dip CII
Executive Director
Chief Customer Officer
Sharon joined WPA in 1992 and has held numerous roles across the business including, General Manager of the Website, Direct Sales and Underwriting, General Manager of Retail and Head of Product Development. More recently she was Head of Retail and Commercial, before her current role as Chief Customer Officer.
Mark Southern
Executive Director
Sales and Marketing Director
Mark joined WPA in 2008 and has held a number of roles across the business. He is currently the Sales and Marketing Director with responsibility for Distribution across WPA. He is also the Chief Executive of the Group's health insurance intermediary, WPA Healthcare Practice Plc. Prior to joining WPA, Mark was a Royal Marines Commando Officer.
Peter Venables FCA
Executive Director
Chief Risk Officer
Pete joined the Board as Chief Risk Officer in March 2020. Prior to joining WPA, Pete was a director at PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP, where he spent 14 years specialising in Financial Services within the UK and in Hong Kong. During this time, he gained extensive experience across insurance, banking and asset management.