Nick Randle, OBE
Director

Nick was Chief Executive of the Society of Local Council Clerks for 13 years from 2000-2013, prior to which he was Town Clerk at Chard Town Council, Somerset, from 1993-2000.  He is CiLCa qualified.During this time he was also lead trainer providing new clerks training for South West Provincial Employers. His early career was working in a number of professional and management positions for IBM in the IT industry and later as as Head of External Affairs at the National Rivers Authority.

He was European Board Director for the International Institute of Municipal Clerks between 2008 and 2012. He has served as a  Parish Councillor, Council Chairman and Chairman of his Parish’s Neighbourhood Plan Steering Committee. He was awarded an OBE for services to Local Government in the 2010 Queens Birthday Honours List.

Nick was one of three founder directors of LGRC  in 2014 and since then he has been personally involved in undertaking assignment work for dozens of  Local Councils.

Steve Milton
Director & Company Chairperson

Steve is a Fellow of the Society of Local Council Clerks and an Associate of the Chartered Governance Institute. He has 40 years local government service in various senior executive and managerial roles including 10 years as Head of Community Governance at Wiltshire Council. He holds the CiLCA qualification.  Steve completed a post graduate qualification in overview and scrutiny at the Institiue of Local Government Studies at University of Birmingham and then went on to study for the MSc in Community Governance under Colin Copus and others at INLOGOV.

Steve specialises in community engagement and governance and in 2011 acted as an advisor to the Coalition Government on the implementation of the Localism Act.

Steve has served as a Town Councillor and as a parish and town clerk in Wiltshire.  His work for LGRC has included locum services, recruitment, community and nighbourhood planning, grevance matters and service reviews.

In 2024 Steve was elected Chair of LGRC.

Wendy Randle
Director

Wendy has been involved in Education for most of her career, firstly as a teacher and then as Manager of Devon School Library Service for 15 years.

She has been Clerk to a small Parish Council in Devon and was instrumental in preparing its Neighbourhood Plan which was successfully adopted in 2017.

Wendy is a founder director of LGRC and was previously Finance Director.

Louise Steele
Vice Chair & Finance Director

Louise is a former Town Clerk and RFO to a Town Council in Surrey, where she worked for 12 years. She is a qualified member of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy and has experience as an HMI of Magistrates Courts. She is CiLCA qualified

Louise has expertise in strategy and business planning, undertaking organisational reviews and financial matters. She has successfully worked on varied projects and Locum assignments for LGRC over several years.

David McKnight
Company Chief Executive Officer

David is a qualified Agricultural Chemist and has a solid background in consultancy and business management, having been Commercial and Business Team Manager for ‘Visit County Durham’ and Chief Executive of the HMS Trincomalee Trust.

He is a fellow of the Chartered Management Institute and has also been a principal consultant for DLM Management Consultants. David’s connection with the Local Council sector was established during a period as Economic Development Manager for a large Town Council in Wiltshire.

Ashley Gray
Partner & Administrative Officer

Ashley is our company administrator.  She is a highly experienced bookkeeper, finance manager, head of accounts, and business administrator, working for private sector companies, as a sole trader, and as a limited company director. She has experience using an array of accountancy software packages – Sage, Opera, Xero, Sage Payroll, Quickbooks, Moneysoft and Brightpay, and is getting to grips with popular local council accounts software too. With extensive experience of management accountancy, combined with payroll, account management, website maintenance, sales and marketing skills, Ashley has integrated quickly as a key member of the LGRC team.

Karen Crowhurst
Director & Company Secretary

Karen is a CiLCA qualified and highly experienced local council clerk and RFO of over 15 years’ experience, having held the CiLCA qualification for over 10 years.   She has also achieved the section 7 General Power of Competence.

She is a clear strategic thinker, an experienced developer of forward plans and developer of policy, a talented operations manager and an expert in people skills, team building and conflict resolution.As well as managing all aspects of council meetings and advising councillors, Karen has expertise in line management of staff, HR, staffing reviews, structural reviews, budget setting and monitoring, applications for funding, CIL funds management, event organisation, undertaking risk assessments, cemetery management, tendering, management of contractors. Karen also has an understanding of high street retail operations from earlier in her career.

Dianne Rickaby MIMgt, Dip IM, FSLCC
Partner

Dianne is a highly experienced CiLCA-qualified Clerk, RFO, and proven senior manager with long-established specialisms in HR and finance management in local government.  She holds a Business Management Degree from the Institute of Management and the Community Governance Degree from the University of Gloucestershire.

Dianne has a wealth of knowledge and her diverse skillset includes strong leadership skills and expertise in financial management.  As a Clerk/RFO, she has a proven track record of working with internal and external stakeholders, and communicating effectively at all levels within an organisation.  With a strong customer focus and effective relationship management abilities within all sectors, she consistently achieves desired objectives, often with stringent deadlines, through her ability to effectively prioritise workloads.

A committed advocate of delivering results through people, Dianne supports continuous personal and professional development with a passion for supporting others through growth opportunities.

Samantha Haywood, CIPD,
Partner & Chair of LGRC Partners EOT

Samantha is an experienced HR and Finance Manager, having worked in the private sector in both capacities for over 25 years. She holds qualifications from the Association of Accounting Technicians, the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, and CIPD.

Samantha has worked as a Parish Clerk and RFO for over 20 years and as a Burial Officer since 2018. She specialises in all areas of HR, finance, social media, and administration, and has acted as an Employee Support officer with the ALCC since 2017. She has the CiLCA qualification

Francesca Pridding
Partner

Francesca is a lawyer and experienced Town Clerk and RFO, she holds the CiLCA qualification and a Post-Graduate Diploma in Legal Practice. Francesca lives in Wales and has had experience of both Welsh and English local authority regulatory landscapes, particularly the differing standards regimes and financial regulations.

Francesca has been responsible for the governance and management of some large charitable trusts and for their restructure, helping Councils meet their fiduciary duties and achieve the best outcomes for the charities. In addition, Francesca has expertise in managing land and employment disputes, information handling and community engagement.

Louise Harrison
Partner

Louise has a  Foundation Degree in Community Governance which she passed in January 2022 with a distinction. She completed her Certificate in Higher Education in Community Governance with the SLCC and De Montfort University in January 2020 and her CiLCA in 2014. Louise also has a degree in BA (Hons) Degree Public Administration (2(i), 1989).

She has  has worked in local government including as Town/Parish Council Clerk, for the last 8 years. Previous to this she  worked for a police service for 20 years, working her way up from a civilian role to detective sergeant supervising the investigation of crimes and managing a team of over 20 officers and staff.

She  has been a town/parish clerk and RFO in Dorset and Hertfordshire for  6 years . She  has experience of reviewing and implementing governance processes and strategic plans, day to day operational management of parish and town council services and facilities while delivering performance and managing various   successful  projects in time and within budget.

Vanessa Ricketts
Partner & EOT Trustee

Vanessa is an experienced Town Clerk and RFO with over 25 years experience in Local Government. A previous Deputy Monitoring Officer and Head of Democratic and Electoral Services, She has spent the last 10 years in the Town and Parish Council sector.

Vanessa is skilled in Training, Investigations, Reviews, Democratic Services, Politics, Finance, Governance, Strategic Planning, Facility Management, Charity Law and Electoral Politics. Vanessa is CiLCA qualified, a Fellow of the Society of Local Council Clerks , the Dorset area new Clerk mentor and a member of the Panel Board for Standards in Public Life.

Reg Williams
Freelance Associate

Reg is an experienced public sector Open Spaces Manager and a former Town Clerk to one of the largest parish level Councils in the country. He holds qualifications in Amenity, Horticulture & Landscaping, Leisure & Amenities and a Postgraduate Diploma in Management in Local Government.

Since 2017, Reg has been a freelance consultant and is an acknowledged expert in the management of local amenities and open spaces.

Tracey Predeth
Freelance Associate

Georgia Turner
Freelance Associate

Georgia has spent over two decades leading communications, marketing, stakeholder engagement, and consultation & research teams within local government, including in the role of Director of Communications and Marketing. An energetic, multi-award-winning communications professional and member of the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, Georgia is skilled in communications and stakeholder engagement strategy and planning for organisations and to support single issues, crisis communications, strategic narrative, communications shared service development, and communications capacity and capability reviews.

Georgia is offering consultancy services via the LGRC, including:

• communications and stakeholder strategy and plan development, for your organisation as a whole or to support priority issues such as devolution, asset management and neighbourhood planning
• Crisis communications advice
• Strategy advice around income generation from council assets
• Governance for communications management