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Meet The Team

Each member of the LGRC team brings a unique set of skills together with extensive experience of local council management and the challenges facing public sector institutions. The experience the team brings to its consultancy, training and outsourced services includes:

  • Strategic planning and budgeting
  • Council leadership and management skills
  • Staffing structures, roles, responsibilities, recruitment and skills development
  • Financial planning, budget preparation, and financial management
  • Regulatory and legal compliance
  • Training needs analysis, training programme design, delivery and assessment
  • Systems, procedures, administrative management and IT support
  • Capital projects – scoping, budgeting, tender management, supplier management
  • Outsourcing & shared services – financial evaluation, service level agreements, project management, performance management

 LGRC has 50+ Partners and  Associates based around the country. Here are some of the names and faces


Nick Randle, OBE, Company Chairman

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, Partner, Company Vice Chairman

Steve is a Fellow of the SLCC and an Associate of the Chartered Governance Institute. He has over 35 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 CiLCAqualification

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 is currently Clerk to a Parish Council in Wiltshire.



Wendy Randle, Company Secretary

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, Partner, Company 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, 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, Partner, Main Board Director, EOT Trustee

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.


Janet Eustace,  Partner,

Chairman, LGRC Partners Employee Ownership Trust

Janet has extensive experience in the local council sector, having worked as a Town Clerk and RFO in Oxfordshire for 12 years. She holds the CiLCA qualification. She has also been Clerk and RFO to a large parish council in Buckinghamshire and is currently clerk to a small council in Gloucestershire.

Prior to her career in local government, Janet had a 25-year career in the Civil Service, chiefly in the Department for the Environment, but also in Education, the Cabinet Office, and Surrey County Council. Janet advised ministers on Housing, Sport and Recreation, and Finance policies. She also spent 4 years in Personnel, including carrying out job evaluations for senior Civil Service posts.


Samantha Haywood, CIPD, Partner, EOT Trustee

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

Tracy has been a Parish Clerk and Chief Executive Officer for 25 years and went freelance in March 2021. She holds a Degree in Local Policy and a Masters Degree in Public Administration, Tracy also holds the Cilca qualification and IOSH.
She has experience in managing a budget in excess of £2m, running a Leisure Centre, Library, Open Spaces, and troubleshooting for many large and small Councils. She has assisted the Boroughs of Swindon and Eastleigh with the creation of new Parish and Town Councils and is an excellent team leader.
Tracy is a Fellow of  SLCC and a Member of SOLACE.

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


The map below shows where our current partners and associates are located. Click the image to enlarge or use gesture on small screens.

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How We Work

For consultancy and outsourced services, we provide services which are tailored to your specific needs and timescale. For Locum services we seek to provide the best possible fit of skills and experience with the size and current situation of the client Council. Our training services include both regular, scheduled courses on a range of topics, or we can design training programmes or courses to meet the specific needs of your Council.


CONTACT US TODAY TO FIND OUT MORE