Experienced senior financial professionals and non-executive directors (NEDs) from across practice, industry and regulatory spheres, are to join ICAEW’s reconstituted Board on 4 June. 

Six chartered accountants will replace positions previously held by ICAEW Council members and department board chairs, and an additional lay person joins the board to further expand views from outside the accountancy profession.

The new board members are:

• Nina Hingorani-Crain ACA  
• Elizabeth Barber FCA 
• Simon Peacock FCA 
• Mary Phibbs FCA
• Richard Nunn FCA
• Shamshad Ali ACA
• Mark Freebairn

Peter Wyman, Chair of the ICAEW Board, congratulated the new appointees: “I am delighted to welcome our new board members. They bring a wealth of skills, talents and experience to ICAEW and I very much look forward to working with them.”

Wyman also offered his thanks to the outgoing board members – Caroline Smale, Christabel Cowling, Mark Coles, Helen Brennan and Robert Tindle – acknowledging their valuable contributions and continued commitment to ICAEW.

He continued: “ICAEW now moves forward with an exceptionally strong and diverse Board, brimming with ideas and enthusiasm. It is well placed to provide real leadership to the accountancy profession in this country and around the world.” 

New members and roles

Several of the new appointees will hold additional roles chairing ICAEW committees. Nina Hingorani-Crain, who previously worked as Chief of Staff at the Financial Conduct Authority and holds NED positions at the National Employment Savings Trust and Oxleas NHS Foundation Trust, will chair the Audit Committee.

Elizabeth Barber will become Risk Committee Chair and has held roles including Chief Executive of Yorkshire Water and Head of Audit for the North of England for EY. Meanwhile, Simon Peacock, Chief Executive of insurer the Shipowners’ Club and former Group Finance Director at the real estate developer The Hyde Group, will chair the Investment Committee.

Alongside increasing representation from outside the profession from two to three board members, Mark Freebairn retains his current position as Chair of ICAEW’s Remuneration Committee. Freebairn is CFO Practice at recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson and previously chaired the Remuneration Committee at GlobalData Plc.

Freebairn, Peacock, Barber and Hingorani-Chain will serve three-year terms on the Board, the remaining members will serve two-year terms. 

Mary Phibbs holds a variety of NED roles, including Chair at Virgin Money Unit Trust Managers, Senior Independent Director (SID) and Chair of the Audit Committee at Just Group plc.

Shamshad Ali is a Senior Advisor to companies and private equity investors. Previously he was the Chief Transformation and Strategy Officer of Vanquis Banking Group and a partner in PwC’s Deals Practice in London.

Richard Nunn, who is stepping down from the ICAEW Council to take up his new Board role, is based in Canada and is Chair of University of Toronto Asset Management Corporation. He also chairs the Investment Committee and Audit Committee of the Ontario Pension Board.

The reshaped Board

Alongside the new appointments, ICAEW has confirmed that the two existing lay members of the Board – Mary Hockaday and Malcolm Wood – have had their positions renewed. Hockaday will also become the Board’s first SID.

The final places on the Board are made up of ICAEW’s Chief Executive Officer, Alan Vallance; Chief Financial Officer, David Franklin; Chief Operating Officer, Sharron Gunn; and President, Mark Rhys. 

The reconstitution of the Board was a key recommendation of the comprehensive review of ICAEW’s governance launched in 2020 and also included the appointment of an independent Chair last year. 

The review aimed to ensure the Institute was equipped to deliver its vision for the future of the profession while continuing to serve the public interest and support its members.