Introducing our Board
Our Board are responsible for the overall direction of the Company and setting the Company’s values and standards.
Jim McLaren MBE
Chairman
Jim was appointed to the Board in 2012 and appointed Chairman in 2019. He is also Chair of the Nomination Committee.
He served as President of NFU Scotland from 2007 to 2011, having served previously as the organisation’s Milk Committee Chairman before becoming Vice President in 2006. Jim was Chairman of Quality Meat Scotland Limited and is a former Director of Scotland’s Rural College. Jim is a mixed beef and arable farmer from Perthshire in Central Scotland.
Lindsay Sinclair
Group Chief Executive
Lindsay was appointed Group Chief Executive in 2008 and is responsible for managing the conduct of the Group’s business.
During his career he has run banking and insurance businesses around the world for Barclays, ING and Standard Chartered. He is a Board member of the global representative body of the cooperative and mutual insurance sector, ICMIF, and sits on the General Insurance Committee of the Association of British Insurers. He also sits on the steering group of The Prince's Farm Resilience Programme.
Jon Bailie
Non-Executive Director
Jon was appointed to the Board in 2018 and is Chair of the Board Investment Committee.
He has extensive investment management experience, having held senior positions at Pioneer Investments, AXA Investment Managers and Russell Investments. He is a Non-Executive Director of Openwork Wealth Management and a Board member of the Pensions Infrastructure Platform. He was previously Chairman of the Management Committee of Pantheon Ventures, a global private equity business.
Steve Bower BSc (Hons), ACII
Customer Services Director
Steve became a Director in 2010 and is responsible for General Insurance Customer Services, which includes Underwriting, Claims and Re-insurance, at our Head Office and our seven regional centres.
Steve’s career at NFU Mutual spans three decades and during that time he has held a variety of roles including Sales Manager, Regional Manager and Chief Manager – Life Services.
Ali Capper
Non-Executive Director
Ali was appointed to the Board in 2018.
She is Chair of the NFU National Horticulture Board, a director of the British Hop Association, Wye Hops Limited and Wye Fruit Limited, Executive Chair of British Apples and Pears and a Trustee of Nuffield Farming Scholarship Trust. She is a previous Board member of Cargill Growers Association. Ali worked in advertising for 16 years where she progressed to Client Services Director before becoming a farmer.
Brian Duffin OBE
Non-Executive Director
Brian was appointed to the Board in 2014. He is Senior Independent Director, Chairman of the With-Profits Committee and Chairman of the Trustees of the Group’s Staff Retirement Benefit Scheme.
Brian was Group Chief Executive of Scottish Life and Executive Director of Royal London Group. He is Chairman of Scottish Equitable Policyholders Trust, the GEC 1972 Pension Plan, Aviva’s With Profits Committee and the Trustee of the Church of Scotland Investors Trust.
Alan Fairhead
Non-Executive Director
Alan was appointed to the Board in 2020 and is Chair of the Board Risk Committee.
A Chartered Insurer and Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute, he has over 40 years domestic and international General Insurance experience in underwriting and operational management. After a career spanning 21 years at Guardian Royal Exchange he progressed through Zurich Insurance Group to become CEO of Zurich Specialties London Ltd before Global Chief Underwriting Officer based in Zurich. Alan is also Non-Executive Director of Everest Insurance (Ireland) DAC where he is also Chair of their Board Risk Committee.
Christine Kennedy OBE
Non-Executive Director
Christine was appointed to the Board in 2014. She is Chair of the Remuneration Committee and a Trustee of the NFU Mutual Charitable Trust.
A partner in her family’s beef farm for 30 years, Christine was the Director of Commodities and Food for the UFU and served on its board. She was a member of the NI Food Advisory Committee and is a NI panel member of the Council for Awards of Royal Agricultural Societies. Christine is also a member of the Rural Affairs Committee of the UFU and a Trustee of Donaghadee YFC.
Richard Morley
Finance Director
Richard joined NFU Mutual in 2011 and was appointed to the Board in 2018. His responsibilities include Financial & Regulatory Reporting, Financial Planning & Analysis, Investments, Property and Procurement.
He has held a variety of Finance leadership roles for Thames Water, BNP-Paribas and Lloyds Banking Group. He is a qualified accountant and Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.
David Roper
Non-Executive Director
David was appointed to the Board in 2019. He is Chairman of the Audit Committee.
He graduated from Cambridge University with a degree in Music and subsequently trained as an accountant before joining PwC in 1990. He rose through that organisation to become a Director and then a Partner specialising in the financial services sector, working in London, Manchester and Birmingham. He is on the board of Atom Bank and is also Deputy Chairman of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Royal Northern College of Music and the Associated Board of the Royal Schools of Music.
Nick Turner
Sales & Agency Director
Nick was appointed to the Board in 2013 as the Sales and Agency Director. He is responsible for the growth of the General Insurance and Life businesses.
Nick joined NFU Mutual from AXA where he was Managing Director, Intermediary & Partnerships – Personal Lines. His career spans more than 34 years, largely in the fields of Life and Wealth Management. Nick is President of the Chartered Insurance Institute and was previously President of the Personal Finance Society.