Chris Train
Independent Chair
Chris Train OBE was appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director on 24 February 2022 and became Chair on 1 April 2022. Chris has extensive experience in the utilities industry having been Chief Executive Officer of Cadent Gas Limited and Executive and Senior Adviser at CT Energy. Chris is an experienced executive and board director and is currently Non-Executive Chair of Clean Power Hydrogen and Chair of Sellafield Ltd. He previously was a Non-Executive Director of The Nuclear Decommissioning Authority. Chris is a Chartered Engineer and holds a Bachelor’s Degree (Hons) in Fuel and Energy Engineering and an MBA.
Lisa Clement
Independent Non-Executive Director (Chair of Audit and Risk Committee)
Lisa was appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director in January 2023. During her executive career Lisa worked across a wide range of sectors for companies ranging from multi-billion pound UK and US main-market listed global conglomerates to start-up, private equity backed SMEs. Her roles included being Chief Financial Officer for Sea Containers Ltd. Subsequently she was a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Audit Committee for U.K. Coal PLC during its restructure and reorganisation into Harworth Group PLC, where she also Chaired the Audit Committee, and later chaired the Remuneration Committee and was Senior Independent Director. She was previously a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Remuneration Committee for Light Science Technologies Holdings PLC. Lisa is a Chartered Accountant and graduate of Oxford University.
John Barnes
Independent Non-Executive Director
John was appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director on 28 January 2016. Prior to his more recent involvement with a start-up company developing renewable energy schemes, John had gained over 30 years’ experience in the water industry, mainly in the UK, but with spells in the Middle East and New Zealand. John is a former Non-Executive Director of the Mid-Cheshire Hospitals Foundation Trust and was Executive Chair of All Change for Crewe, focused on making the most of inward investment to the town. John is a Chartered Engineer and holds a Bachelor of Engineering in Civil & Structural Engineering.
Célia Pronto
Independent Non-Executive Director (Chair of Remuneration Committee)
Célia was appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director on 1 June 2018 and has a wealth of experience and expertise of the service sector in a range of industries. Célia is a Non-Executive Director of Samworth Brothers (Holdings) Ltd and Hostmore plc. She is a non-executive director of Campden BRI and chairs their Remuneration & Nomination Committee. She is the founder of The Digital Success Co Ltd, and co-founder of Impact Ventures Group Limited.
Célia was previously Managing Director at Love Home Swap, a subsidiary of RCI Worldwide, Group Marketing & E-Commerce Director and Board Member of Ford Retail Group and Chief Customer and Digital Officer of Casual Dining Group Ltd. Célia holds a Bachelor of Commerce undergraduate degree and an MBA.
Michael McKinstry
Non-Executive Director
Michael McKinstry was appointed a Non-Executive Director on 15 August 2024 and is a Senior Adviser at Vantage Infrastructure. He retired from his position as Group CEO of Phoenix Natural Gas Limited (now Phoenix Energy Group) in 2023 after more than 27 years within the business. He joined Phoenix in 1996 on its formation, initially as Group CFO before being appointed Group CEO in 2014 and has extensive knowledge and experience at a senior management and board level. He has extensive regulatory experience having led Phoenix through multiple price controls, significant corporate finance experience working with rating agencies and leading various refinancings, and in managing corporate change including numerous restructurings and sale processes.
Michael is a director of Choice Housing Ltd, one of the largest housing associations in Northern Ireland, and a senior adviser to the board of Forward Emphasis International Ltd, a specialist BPO mainly to regulated insurance and financial services sector in the Republic of Ireland alongside the various interests he holds within both education and charitable sectors in Northern Ireland. Michael is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA).
Mark McArdle
Non-Executive Director - Shareholder Nominated
Mark was appointed as a Non-Executive Director on 9 February 2022. Mark joined Morrison & Co as an Investment Director in Morrison & Co’s ANZ Investment Team, based in the Sydney office before relocating to London as part of the European investment team in November 2021. Prior to joining Morrison & Co in 2020, Mark was an investment professional in QIC’s Global Infrastructure business, focused on the utilities and renewable sectors, where he was responsible for origination, transaction execution and asset management. Prior to QIC, Mark worked in M&A and financing roles within the utilities and renewable sectors at RBC Capital Markets in both London and Sydney. Mark holds a Master of Chemistry from the University of Oxford.
David Hinton
Chief Executive Officer
David has been CEO since 1 August 2020 and was previously Asset and Regulation Director from 1 June 2013. David has more than 25 years’ experience at South East Water and its predecessor companies acquired in various roles including Head of Regulation and Strategy and Head of Water Quality. With a strong science background, David has held previous senior roles in scientific consultancies as well as laboratory management for the Public Health Laboratory Services. David holds a BSc (Hons) in Biotechnology and a Master of Business Administration specialising in ethical consumerism.
Andrew Farmer
Chief Financial Officer
Andrew, who joined as CFO on 1 August 2015, has held a number of senior management posts in finance, most recently at MAG plc, the country’s largest UK owned airport operator, and Doosan Power Systems, a leading manufacturing, energy technologies and services company.
Andrew is a non-executive Director of Moat Homes, a housing association in the South East of England. Andrew holds a BSc (Hons) in Engineering and Business Studies from the University of Warwick and qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Price Waterhouse.