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Our staff & trustees


Staff

Around 120 people work for the Centre for Sustainable Energy.

You can find most of CSE’s staff in the accordion below or on this organisational diagram. For operational reasons, a further 40 or so members of the Household Energy Team who provide energy advice and casework are not listed here.

(Click here to see our trustees.)

Simon Roberts OBE, our chief executive for the past 22 years, will be leaving CSE at the end of March 2024. Click here to read a longer statement. While our board of trustees is planning the recruitment process to find Simon’s successor, deputy director, Janine Michael, continues to lead the charity with support from other directors and the chair of trustees, Anne Obey.


Trustees

Andrew is a widely-recognised expert in behaviour and social change, carrying out research for a wide range of public and voluntary sector clients.

Andrew has a background in advertising, followed by extensive experience – and formal qualifications – in market research. As an expert on behaviour change, he developed a new inter-disciplinary model of behaviour which was launched by The Scottish Government in 2013, and is now their tool of choice for maximising the public’s contribution to delivering a Low Carbon Scotland.

Over the years working on behaviour change and public engagement, Andrew has built up a reputation as an authority on using segmentation in the public sector. Between 2007 and 2012, he has acted as an independent advisor to Defra on segmentation models.

Most recently, Andrew acted as research director throughout the process of developing the Welsh Government’s Sustainability Audience Segmentation. Andrew continues to work on segmentation in the context of food-related behaviours (eg. with WRAP) and is completing a scoping study for the Department for Transport (with Aberdeen University) on developing a travel and transport-related segmentation model of businesses.

Andrew joined the Board of CSE in June 2014.

Anne is a non-executive director and university governor. Her executive career included 15 years at Nationwide Building Society, holding positions including Director of Financial Reporting where she led the team responsible for Nationwide’s external financial reporting and financial regulatory reporting, and Chief Internal Auditor. She was extensively involved in Nationwide’s inclusion and diversity agenda, and chaired the pensions governance committee. As well as financial reporting her areas of expertise include enterprise-wide governance, risk management and control, and leading business change programmes.

Anne is a Chartered Accountant and prior to joining Nationwide was a director at PricewaterhouseCoopers, where she specialised in retail banking and mortgage lending.

Anne became a CSE Trustee in 2012. Anne is also a non-executive director of Western Provident Association and an independent governor of Coventry University.

Anne was awarded an OBE for services to financial reporting and sustainable energy in the New Year’s Honours List 2019.

Ariane heads up the climate programme at Wiltshire Council, one of the largest local authorities in the country. It has an ambitious target to become carbon neutral by 2030 and is top of the Friends of the Earth league table for climate-friendly local authorities.

Ariane has extensive local government experience at county, district and unitary levels and has worked in the not-for-profit sector.

Ariane has led organisational change programmes and is an Executive Coach. Ariane became a Trustee of CSE in June 2014.

Bill Hull is a Partner and Head of Commercial Services at national law firm TLT. He has worked as a lawyer specialising in renewables and energy efficiency for the last 25 years, advising on a range of commercial contracts, procurement and subsidies related matters across a broad client base. He has been recommended by Legal 500 since 2004.

Bill has particular expertise in advising on renewable energy projects across both the energy and public sectors and has advised on some of the most significant and high profile energy efficiency projects in recent years. He has also advised on projects relating to solar PV, off and onshore wind, hydro, biomass, anaerobic digestion and landfill gas generation schemes. He is recognised for his work as an adviser on UK Government and Scottish Executive programmes supporting energy efficiency and renewables.

Bill is regularly invited to speak at industry events where he has in the past commented on the opportunities for energy efficiency, renewable electricity and renewable energy supply.

Claire is an Architect & Associate at Askew Cavanna Architects, a practice specialising in low energy, sustainable and community focused projects. Claire leads on the practice’s public consultation and engagement processes.

Throughout her career Claire has worked predominantly with existing buildings and feels strongly that upgrading our existing built stock at pace is needed to significantly reduce our carbon emissions. To support this she holds a L5 Diploma (PAS 2035) in Retrofit Coordination and Risk Management from the Retrofit Academy, and sits on the Design West review panel which aims to promote excellence in architecture and urban design.

She is an active advocate for gender and racial equality, youth empowerment and social mobility in the built environment, as well as providing mentoring for young people via the RIBA, Social Mobility Foundation and Built By Us, and is an Equal Opportunity Ambassador for Babassa.

Elizabeth has worked in the environmental conservation sector for over two years, most recently as Education and Community Officer at Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust, having previously held internships with Shropshire Wildlife Trust and Hengistbury Head Nature Reserve. She has been part of CSE’s Bright Green Future programme for over seven years, both as a participant, mentor and Youth Advisory Board member.

Elizabeth holds a First Class BASc in Global Sustainable Development and Philosophy from the University of Warwick, where she held the role of a Student Ambassador and up graduating, was awarded the Citizenship and Leadership Award for her work on a university-wide project called Widening Participation. She was also Campaigns Coordinator for Warwick Student Action for Refugees Society.

Dr Jane Dennett-Thorpe is the Deputy Director, Net Zero Transition at Ofgem. Her work informs the regulator and the energy industry about the implications of the energy transition, especially its potential impact on consumers.

Jane has more than two decades’ experience on sustainability and low carbon energy matters. In over 13 years in government she held policy and analytic roles. She led industrial energy efficiency policy at the Department of Energy and Climate Change and served as DECC’s Deputy Head of Science (2014-16).  She has also been active in developing innovative approaches that seek to tackle social justice and environmental challenges in a holistic way both locally and internationally – including a stint with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

She has strong academic credentials: a PhD in astrophysics from Cambridge and Masters degrees from Harvard (history of science) and Loughborough (renewable energy systems). She is a Fellow of the Energy Institute.

Jane was appointed to the Board in October 2018.

Jane Wildblood is a climate, energy and environmental sustainability strategic leader whose career has spanned senior leadership roles in local government and environmental campaigning at national and international level. She has a strong policy, management and delivery track record, and extensive experience of influencing decision makers and enabling council and community action.

Previously environmental sustainability, climate change and sustainable energy strategic lead for Bath and North East Somerset Council, Jane has a deep understanding of the strategic sustainable energy challenges facing local communities, particularly in the West of England  – from affluent heritage city to urban and rural poverty and inequality. In addition to her role as trustee of CSE, Jane also sits on the board of Bath & West Low Carbon Community Fund and the West of England Rural Network.

Kaye has been on the Board since 2014. She has over 25 years’ experience in sustainable energy and has held senior positions including Assistant Chief Executive of Severn Wye Energy Agency and Chair of Energy Advice South West. She cofounded and was Managing Director of The Glass Lift, developing leadership and supporting gender diversity in the work place. Kaye is currently a Non Executive Director and chairs the Board at Cleaner Safer Group.

Peter is co-founder and Managing Director of Bath & West Community Energy (BWCE), a local community enterprise operating since 2010 that own and operate 12.5MW of community solar PV and one small hydro scheme and has to date distributed £250,000 of surplus back into the local community. BWCE is developing a new pipeline of community owned renewable energy assets and is delivering several innovation projects providing Demand Side Response and grid services that seek to minimise peak time use of heat pumps, hot water heaters and electric vehicle charging.

Peter has 35 years’ experience of working on renewable energy, energy efficiency and fuel poverty programmes at national, regional and local levels, with a strong focus on local & community action. He was chief executive at CSE until 2002 when he resigned due to family illness. As well being a trustee at CSE, Peter is deputy chair of Community Energy England and a director of COAM Members Ltd, the community owned parent company of the asset manager, Bright Renewables. He was awarded an MBE for services to sustainable energy in 2015 and has an MSc in Energy Resource Management.

Rachel is a dynamic and strategic leader with over 30 years’ professional experience in the public, private and non-for-profit sectors. She is passionate about environmental sustainability with a national and international track record in enhancing climate resilience and transitioning to a low carbon future.

Rachel has a particular focus on ensuring that the transition is just – that no communities are left behind and new opportunities are maximised for all. She has held lead business development and management roles in private and public sector organisations, and is currently Head of Energy and Environment, and wider environmental spokesperson for Ipsos UK.

Shantha is CEO at Workfinder, a platform which connects talented diverse, young people with work opportunities at growing, innovative organisations. He started his career in the civil service, first on the fast track working on renewables policy in the DTI (2002) then HM Treasury’s climate change team (including the Stern Review). Shantha went on to work for NESTA then KPMG before joining Dyson in 2010 as Global Strategy and Product Director. He served as Dyson’s Europe Commercial Director. He joined ROLI, a music tech start up, as Chief Commercial Officer in 2019. He has a PhD in Molecular Biology. Shantha was appointed to the Board in October 2018.

William was Managing Director of Warm Zones community interest company until his retirement in March 2018. Warm Zones is a not-for-profit social enterprise wholly owned by national fuel poverty charity, National Energy Action (NEA). The company contributes to the achievement of NEA’s objective of addressing fuel poverty by delivering energy efficiency improvements and related services targeted at low income and other vulnerable households.

William was involved in the establishment of Warm Zones in 2000, was a founding director of the company and was appointed as full-time Managing Director in 2008. Prior to this he was Chief Executive of NEA for nine years having been initially appointed to the charity as Deputy Director in 1988. William has been a member of a number of government and industry fuel poverty and energy efficiency advisory bodies.

Before joining NEA he had extensive experience working in local government in housing management and the delivery of capital programmes, together with general community development. He has also been involved in a range of voluntary housing and energy projects.

William has a degree in economics and holds the Institute of Housing Professional Qualification.


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