Our people

Mike has been the Chief Executive of British Safety Council since September 2015 and was the driving force behind the establishment of the mental health charity, Mates in Mind.  Mike is passionate about safety leadership, the need to take a holistic approach in managing health, safety and wellbeing, and the importance of safety culture. Mike has spoken at conferences around the world on these topics, and also with the Boards of many organisations in the UK, Middle East and in India.

Mike’s first involvement in safety related organisations was in 2006 when he became the Chief Executive of the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office, a Trading Fund within the Ministry of Defence.  Over five years he grew the business substantially allowing it to better meet its aim of supporting safe, secure and thriving oceans.  After this he co-founded Global Navigation Solutions, the worlds’ leading provider of navigation products and services, supporting the safety of commercial shipping.

Before moving into the maritime services sector, Mike had a successful 15-year career in Financial Services, building HBOS's European Financial Services business and sitting on the Boards’ of HBOS Europe & North America and the Clerical Medical Investment Group.

Mike is a qualified Chartered Accountant and spent a number of years at the start of his career in Audit and Consultancy.

As a recent graduate, Jigna joined the British Safety Council in August 1999 as a Regional Account Executive. Since then Jigna has held several positions including Quality Manager where, under her stewardship, the British Safety Council gained certification to the ISO 9001 standard. As Head of Membership and Client Services, Jigna oversaw significant growth in international membership and developed and launched an enhanced membership proposition and engagement programme. Jigna held the position of Director of Operations until her promotion in 2015.

Jigna has a law degree from Trinity College, Cambridge and is a member of the Association of Project Managers.

Paul joined the British Safety Council in May 2018 as Engagement Director, having spent 26 years in numerous business to business and consumer focused marketing and business development type roles.  Having spent a significant part of his career within the insurance industry heading up the marketing for brands like Direct Line and Churchill, he is a Chartered Insurance Practitioner and holds an honours degree in financial services.

He has subsequently held senior marketing and business development roles, firstly, at Circle Housing, which was one of the largest social housing and care/support providers in the UK.  Then more recently within the travel industry, having been Development Director for The Association of Bonded Travel Organisers Trust.

Paul brings a wealth of experience in UK and international not for profit, commercial and member based marketing best practice.  He also has significant experience in leading large omni-channel disruptive campaigns as well as digital and brand transformations.

Stephen joined the organisation in December 2022. He specialises in strategic workplace health & wellbeing and his career in the field spans 30 years. He has worked in-house HR, in the consulting space through to leadership roles in the corporate health & wellbeing provider space. More recently, Stephen was Head of Programme for our sister charity, Mates in Mind.

Stephen works with organisations around the world helping them understand and address people risks, with a specific focus on well-being. His work encompasses a broad range of workplace well-being interventions; from optimising support infrastructures, to development of psychosocial risk management frameworks, to attendance management frameworks, through to behavioural change informed programmes.  

Steve Ward has been a pivotal member of the British Safety Council since 2001, playing a key role in shaping the organisation’s IT strategy and innovation. As Director of Information Technology, he leads the development and execution of digital transformation initiatives, ensuring the successful delivery of high-impact projects that enhance operational efficiency and strengthen data security.

With extensive expertise in digital strategy, Salesforce architecture, Microsoft Cloud technologies, data security and GDPR compliance and web & e-commerce technologies, Steve drives the integration of cutting-edge solutions that support the British Safety Council’s mission to advance health, safety, and environmental best practices.

His leadership in business process optimisation and CRM ensures that the organisation’s IT infrastructure aligns with strategic objectives, improving service delivery and overall effectiveness. Combining strong project management capabilities with deep technical expertise, Steve consistently drives the successful implementation of key initiatives across the organisation.

Adil Bhatti joined as Group Finance Director in January 2021, bringing extensive experience in senior finance and transformational roles across Financial Services, Support Services, Manufacturing, and Construction.

He has served as Finance Director for UK and US-listed companies, CFO for a Private Equity-backed firm, and CFO at a FinTech start-up, leading finance transformations across the USA and Europe.

Previously, Adil was a Director at Deloitte, providing Audit, Assurance, and Transaction Advisory services to listed and private organisations.

He is a Chartered Accountant (ICAEW) and holds an MBA from Warwick Business School.

Dr Julie Riggs joined British Safety Council in 2020 as Senior Head of Education, promoted to the Director of Education in 2024. Julie has worked for over 30 years as an OSH practitioner and trainer, operating as a leader in strategic, corporate and global roles with broad cross-industry experience. Julie has an MSc and Doctorate in her field and a Chartered Fellowship with IOSH, she is an established writer, published author and active blogger; her work has featured in the national press and on media programmes such as BBC Radio 4. She has acted as a viva examiner for doctorate candidates and mentors degree students. Julie has also contributed to commercial and Government research projects and advisory standards, including presenting research in the House of Common. She has also volunteered for numerous global charities protecting vulnerable workers.

At British Safety Council Julie works with individual and organisations to build knowledge in safety, sustainability and wellbeing, using targeted education to drive long-term behavioural change, support sustainable development goals, and contribute to building safer, healthier and more resilient societies, with the intent to creating meaningful change to make a difference.

Appointed as Country Manager India of the British Safety Council on 11 September 2017. 

Prior to this, Hemant worked with British Airways in South Asia in various management roles in Commercial, Customer Service, Operations and Safety Management.

From 2014 to 2017, Hemant held the post of Head of Corporate & Travel Management Company Sales India with British Airways, where over three years, he substantially grew the airline’s performance in these high margin business channels by growing market share, increasing revenue and profits.

Before this, Hemant had close to 10 years of experience managing customer service, operations and safety performance for British Airways at Mumbai, Male and Chennai airports. In 2009, he was responsible for managing the start-up of British Airways’ flight operations in the Maldives. During this period, he also held several leadership positions with industry bodies at these airports including being the Chairperson with Mumbai’s Airport Operators Council during 2013-14.

Hemant Sethi holds a Bachelor’s degree in Hotel & Hospitality Management from the Welcomgroup (ITC) Institute in Manipal.

Sam started her career as a research psychologist and went on to set up and lead mental health services at local, regional and national level. With a personal and professional commitment to the value of diverse and inclusive teams Sam has led DEIB programmes and been a national Safeguarding Lead.

During Sam’s career she has retained her interest in research and in developing effective, evidence-based interventions that have positive impact at system, organisational and individual level. Prior to leading Mates in Mind, Sam was the CEO of WPF Therapy.

Sam has a Masters in Leading in Organisations: Psychodynamic and Systemic Approaches.

Peter McGettrick is the Chairman of British Safety Council, since 26 October 2021.

Peter is the Managing Director of Advisory at Turner & Townsend and is responsible for over 400 professionals working across contract services, consulting, technology, operational excellence, health, safety and quality. Peter has been with Turner & Townsend for over 5 years, and previously spent 15 years at Capita where he was latterly Divisional Managing Director. Peter is originally from Glasgow where he obtained his Bachelors, Masters and MBA degrees and is also a Chartered Safety Practitioner by background. Peter has managed and grown numerous businesses throughout his career and is passionate about creating a high performing environment where people can fulfil their potential. Peter is a keen sportsman and in the past has played squash regionally and coached internationally.

Prasad Bangalore has been appointed to the Board in March 2020. He is an experienced executive with over 20 years of cross sector experience in technology gained by working in both public and private sector industries. In addition to his engineering background and MBA he has recently obtained Diploma in Company Direction from IoD. He has been volunteering and been on the management board in public sector sports & wellbeing sector and Is passionate about helping organisations in developing and executing their technology strategies.

Appointed as a Trustee in October 2018, David has 15 years’ experience in senior commercial leadership roles, predominantly in the material handling industry.  David is currently head of division at Piab, a world leader in moving and gripping solutions based on vacuum technology. David has a strong track record driving rapid revenue growth across numerous companies globally. 

Jonathan is Executive Director, Wellbeing Sustainability & Assurance for leading FM Company EMCOR UK responsible for the development and practical application of the organisations enterprise strategies for these disciplines A Fellow of IIRSM and the Royal Society of Fellows, Jonathan has Masters degrees in Behaviour Change and in Health Research. A PhD student studying Organisational Health & Wellbeing, Jonathan is a Board Trustee for the Society of Occupational Medicine and sits on the Business in the Community Wellbeing Leadership Team.

Amanda Owen MBE is Global Safety, Health and Wellbeing Director and Board Member at Heathrow Airport.

Amanda Owen’s career has spanned risk management and global safety, health and wellbeing across retail, banking, healthcare, and aviation. In 2019 she returned to Heathrow to lead safety, health, and wellbeing (SHW). Prior to Heathrow she held previous global risk and SHW leadership roles at Bupa and Royal Bank of Scotland. Amanda is also a Board Member of a Building Control company and specialist safety advisor to Southampton University.

 As a member of Business in the Community’s (BITC) Wellbeing Leadership Team, Amanda is helping to transform mental health and wellbeing at work. She is known for her advocacy in gender equality and safety leadership in aviation, and is Vice Chair at Green Corridor, a charity for young people with special educational needs. 

Amanda is a Chartered Safety Practitioner, has a degree in Economics, a Masters in Security and Information Technology, and a Master of Laws in Employment Law.

In recognition of her services to Transport, particularly during Covid,  she was awarded an MBE in the 2021 New Years Honours.

Sean is an award winning and experienced Senior IT Leader, Advisor, Mentor and Trustee for both corporate and charitable organisations. He has been professionally recognised by becoming a Chartered IT Professional of the British Computer Society and Liveryman of the Worshipful Company of Information Technologists. 

Sean has worked within both the private and public sectors, where he has performed as a visionary leader building high performing teams and built business-enhancing systems and services. Sean has moved into a Director of Consulting role related to Cloud and Digital Transformation, to provide other companies with the benefit of his knowledge and experience.

From a personal perspective, Sean has a real passion for using the knowledge and experience he has gained to help address some of the issues facing society today, such as digital poverty, homelessness and the responsible use of technology to enhance sustainability initiatives. He is also keen to inspire others to think of how they could do more.

Rupert is an economist and investment professional with over 30 years’ experience in the financial sector. He has worked at several leading financial institutions and held positions as chief economist, chief investment officer and head of research. He has a strong track record in boosting investment performance and is a regular commentator on CNBC and Bloomberg. Currently, he is global investment strategist at a UK wealth manager.

Appointed to the Board in August 2017, Philip has over 30 years’ experience of working in a regulatory environment originally joining the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) as a Factory Inspector. He spent a period working in the Department for Work and Pensions to head up the Health and Safety Sponsorship Team, advising Government Ministers on health and safety at work policy and the work of the Health and Safety Executive. More recently he was HSE’s Chief Inspector of Construction before taking up his current role as Head of HSE’s Operational Strategy Division.

Dave Robinson is an experienced HSE and ESG Director with over 30 years of leadership across health, safety, environment, and sustainability in global infrastructure and engineering projects. He currently serves as HSE & Sustainability Director at Innovo Group, where he advises the Board on strategy and performance across six companies in the Middle East and Africa.

Dave has a strong track record in driving decarbonisation programmes, achieving ISO certifications, and embedding ESG principles into corporate governance. A Chartered Member of IOSH, he also holds credentials in environmental management, construction safety, and sustainable leadership from Oxford University.

Dave brings international expertise, practical insight, and a values-driven approach to supporting the British Safety Council’s mission to make workplaces safer and healthier for all.

Helen brings over 25 years of experience leading complex, mission-driven organisations, with a strong affinity for our vision and values. She has held senior leadership positions across the charity, health, and public sectors, including roles as Chief Executive of a GP Federation, Strategic Director, and currently as CEO of the National Association of Sessional GPs. 

Her career has focused on driving strategic transformation and operational excellence in high-compliance environments, helping organisations evolve their strategies, governance, and operating models in response to shifting policy, workforce, and digital demands. Helen’s blend of strategic insight, operational experience, and people-first leadership makes her an excellent addition to the Board. We believe she will bring significant value to BSC as we continue to advance our mission.