• Board of directors

  • Rick Haythornwaite

    Rick Haythornthwaite – Chairman

    Rick Haythornthwaite has been the Company’s Non-Executive Chairman since July 2009 having joined the Board in March 2009 as a Non-Executive Director. He was Chief Executive of Invensys plc, from 2001 to 2005. He was also previously Group Chief Executive of Blue Circle Industries and spent 18 years with BP in various senior roles. He is currently non-executive chairman of MasterCard Inc, a senior advisor to STAR Capital Partners and President of PetroSaudi International (UK) Ltd. His previous non-executive roles included Board membership of ICI, Land Securities and Lafarge. In the voluntary sector, he is also chairman of the Southbank Centre.

     
  • Malcolm Brinded

    Malcolm Brinded – Non-Executive Director

    Malcolm Brinded joined the Board in October 2010. He is currently Executive Director, Upstream International at Royal Dutch Shell plc. He was appointed an Executive Director of Shell in October 2004 responsible for global Exploration & Production, and from July 2009 for Upstream International. He was previously a Managing Director of Shell Transport from March 2004 and, prior to that, a Managing Director of Royal Dutch from 2002. He was also Country Chair for Shell in the UK. In 2002 he was appointed CBE for services to the UK oil and gas industry. He is a member of the Nigerian Presidential Honorary International Investor Council, Chairman of the Shell Foundation and a Trustee of the Emirates Foundation and the International Business Leaders Forum.

     
  • Patrick Butcher – Group Finance Director

    Patrick Butcher – Group Finance Director

    Patrick Butcher joined the Board in 2009 having previously held the position of Finance Director at English Welsh and Scottish Railway (now DB Schenker) between 2004 and 2008. Before this he was Finance Director at Mapeley Ltd, London Underground and King’s College Hospital. His early career was at Deloitte & Touche as a management consultant and auditor. Patrick is a Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants (South Africa).

     
  • Graham Eccles

    Graham Eccles – Non-Executive Director

    Graham Eccles joined the Board in February 2010 following an extensive career in the railways. Graham’s former positions include Deputy Chairman of London Midland, Chairman of the South East Strategic Health Authority, Board Member of Stagecoach Group plc, Chairman and Managing Director of South West Trains and Co-Chairman of Virgin Rail Group Ltd. He is also Chairman of Virgin Healthcare Holdings Limited.

     
  • Mike Firth

    Mike Firth – Non-Executive Director

    Michael Firth joined the Board in 2004 having previously been Head of Corporate Banking at HSBC Bank plc until his retirement in September 2002. He is also a Non-Executive Director of Communisis plc and Gartmore European Investment Trust plc. He was previously a Non-Executive Director of Somerfield plc and First Technology PLC. Michael is an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Bankers and a Fellow of the ifs School of Finance.

     
  • Robin Gisby - Director, Network Operations

    Robin Gisby - Director, Network Operations

    Robin Gisby joined the Board in 2008 having been employed by Network Rail and its predecessor since 1998 and was appointed Director, Operations and Customer Services for Network Rail in May 2004. Previous roles in the company include two regional director positions and, prior to these, within Railtrack, Director, Network Development and Director, Freight. Before joining Railtrack he had engineering and operational roles in both the UK and overseas mainly with GKN plc. He has a first degree in Engineering Science, an MBA and is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Transport.

     
  • Lawrie Haynes

    Lawrie Haynes – Non-Executive Director

    Lawrie Haynes joined the Board in January 2010. Lawrie is President – Nuclear at Rolls-Royce Plc. He was previously Chief Executive at White Young Green plc. Prior to that, he was Chief Executive of British Nuclear Group and a main board director of BNFL plc. He was also Chief Executive of the Highways Agency. Lawrie has a degree in Business Law (Heriot Watt) and is on the Board of Trustees of the Royal Air Force Benevolent Fund and is Chairman of its pension fund. He received an Honorary Doctorate in Engineering (Heriot Watt 2010) and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport.

     
  • Peter Henderson – Director, Asset Management

    Peter Henderson – Director, Asset Management

    Peter Henderson has responsibility for Engineering, Asset Management, Asset Information, Maintenance and National Logistics. Joining the Board in 2002, he has over 25 years’ rail experience. He began his career with the construction of the Tyne and Wear Metro, he then spent 16 years with the Hong Kong Mass Transit Railway Corporation as Head of Major Projects. He returned to the UK in 2000 to work for Bechtel where he was Projects and Engineering Director for Rail. He has an MSc in Engineering Business Management.

     
  • David Higgins – Chief Executive

    David Higgins – Chief Executive

    David Higgins joined the Board in April 2010 as a Non-Executive Director and took up the role of Chief Executive on 1 February 2011. Previously he was the Chief Executive of the Olympic Delivery Authority (ODA) and held this role from March 2006 until January 2011. Prior to this, he was the Chief Executive Designate at the ODA from December 2005. To December 2005, he was Chief Executive of English Partnerships for three years. His early career was at Lend Lease Group, where he was appointed Managing Director and Group Chief Executive in 1995. David graduated in Civil Engineering from the University of Sydney and holds a Diploma from the Securities Institute of Australia.

     
  • Simon Kirby - Director, Investment projects

    Simon Kirby - Director, Investment projects

    Simon Kirby joined the Board in 2008, having been with the Company since 2003. He is responsible for delivery of all large enhancement and renewal infrastructure projects. He has held positions in the Defence industry and has been involved in a number of Land and Naval Weapons System projects including the Trident Nuclear Submarine Programme. In 2000 he was appointed Managing Director of three BAE Systems shipyards before, in 2002, becoming Managing Director of the BAE Systems Type 45 Prime Contract Organisation. Simon has an MSc in Engineering Business Management from Warwick University and is also on the board of the Major Projects Association.

     
  • Janice Kong

    Janis Kong – Non-Executive Director

    Janis Kong joined the Board in January 2010. She is a Non-Executive Director of Kingfisher plc, Portmeirion Group PLC and VisitBritain, and Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Forum for the Future. During her 33-year career with BAA, Janis held a number of operational roles and, until her retirement in March 2006, was a director of BAA plc and Chairman of Heathrow Airport Ltd as well as being Chairman of Heathrow Express. Prior to that, she was Managing Director of Gatwick Airport. She was previously a Non-Executive Director of The Royal Bank of Scotland Group Plc.

     
  • Keith Ludeman

    Keith Ludeman – Non-Executive Director

    Keith Ludeman joined the Board in July 2011. Prior to this, he was Group Chief Executive of the Go-Ahead Group from July 2006 to July 2011 having previously been a Group Executive Director since 2004 and a main Board advisor since 1998. Before this he held senior management positions in bus companies, mainly at Managing Director level. He has also worked as a transport consultant. He was appointed Chief Executive of the Group’s London bus division in 1997, before moving across to manage the rail division in 1999. He was Chairman of Association of Train Operating Companies between 2003 and 2005, a member of the British Transport Police Authority until 2005. He is currently a Non Executive Director at Interserve Plc. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Transport & Logistics and a Fellow of the Institute of Railway Operators.

     
  • Paul Plummer - Group Strategy Director

    Paul Plummer - Group Strategy Director

    Paul Plummer joined the Board in 2008, having been with the Company since 2002. He is responsible for network planning, the development of enhancement projects, the periodic regulatory review process, reform of the regulatory and contractual framework, and regulatory/government/european affairs. Previously he was Chief Economist and Director of Economics and Finance at the Office of Rail Regulation from 1999 to 2001. He has also worked at National Economic Research Associates (NERA), NM Rothschild and Accenture advising companies, governments and regulators on utility regulation, restructuring, privatisation, strategy, finance and M&A in the UK and overseas. He has a degree and MSc in Economics.

     
  • Bridget Rosewell

    Bridget Rosewell – Non-Executive Director

    Bridget Rosewell joined the Board in January 2011. Currently, she is Chairman and Chief Executive of Volterra, a group of companies producing economic analysis across a range of sectors. She is also Chief Economic Adviser to the Greater London Authority. Between 1988 and 2000 she was Executive Chairman of Business Strategies Ltd – subsequently sold to Experian. She was a founder of Oxford Economic Research Associates (OXERA) and previously held a position as an economics adviser to Chancellor Kenneth Clarke. Her transport experience includes preparing economic analysis for train operators, Crossrail and London & Continental Railways. She was previously a Non-Executive Director of the Department of Work and Pensions and Britannia Building Society (and was chair of the Audit Committees at both).

     
  • Steve Russell

    Steve Russell – Non-Executive Director

    Steve Russell joined the Board in 2007. Previously he was Chief Executive of Boots Group PLC between 2000 and 2003, working there since he started his first job at the Company in 1967. He was a Non-Executive Director of Barclays PLC – where he was a member of the audit committee (having previously been chairman of this committee), the risk, nomination, and governance committees. He is Chairman of Business Control Solutions and is also a trustee of St John’s Ambulance and Tommy’s, the baby charity. He was appointed the Senior Independent Director of Network Rail in July 2009.