ALARM Board
The ALARM Board consists of volunteer directors from the membership. They are responsible for the operational management, strategic planning and business sustainability of ALARM.
Chris Walker
Chris became ALARM President in October 2025 having served on the Board since 2013. He has experience of working in housing, local government, blue light and most recently higher education as the Head of Risk and Opportunity Management at Durham University. One of Chris' priorities is the development of a new ALARM strategy, which will be shaped by enhanced communication and consultation with members and partners.
ALARM provides access to wide range of training and guidance, and I have been lucky enough to help shape this output during my time on the Board.
- LinkedIn:
- https://linkedin.com/in/chriswalker32/
Wayne Rigby
Wayne has worked in local government for nearly 40 years and currently manages the insurance function at Lincolnshire County Council. He leads on Conference & Awards planning and has contributed to many ALARM guidance documents.
ALARM provides targeted risk management, guidance and relevant content to add to your awareness, effectiveness and influencing.
- LinkedIn:
- https://linkedin.com/in/riggers/
Mandy Knowlton-Rayner
Mandy has a wealth of public sector insurance and risk management experience spanning over 30 years. Currently Mandy is supporting a number of public sector organisations with their strategic delivery and embedding of risk management. Mandy delivers the risk management training for ALARM and has a focus on marketing and communications including the editorial content for publications.
Being part of ALARM provides a great network of support as well as guidance and advice. Over my public sector career I have not come across a better group for professional and personal support as well as development opportunities.
Karen Locke
Karen has over 20 years’ experience working in risk management; the first 5 years with the NHS and thereafter in local government. Karen was ALARM President from 2023-2025 and continues now as Director. She is currently Strategic Risk & Insurance Services Manager at Renfrewshire Council and in both her local government and ALARM roles she enjoys building lasting relationships with other risk and insurance professionals and finds great value in learning and sharing best practice together.
I love that ALARM is run by members, for members, so our willingness to share with and learn from each other is a great benefit with huge value for me.
ALARM BOARD OBSERVERS
ALARM’s resilience has been further strengthened as we welcome our Board Observers. This role is designed to give valuable insight into the role and responsibilities of a board, while also allowing our board members to get to know individuals who have shown an interest in future governance roles.
Russell Heppleston
Russell Heppleston is Head of Business Assurance and Chief Auditor at Buckinghamshire Council, where he leads the Council's integrated assurance function, bringing together internal audit, risk management, counter fraud, insurance, and assurance activities to provide greater organisational insight and support effective decision-making. With over 20 years' experience across the public sector, Russell has built expertise in audit, risk management, governance, resilience, and organisational assurance, helping organisations navigate uncertainty while strengthening accountability, performance, and public trust.
Russell is a Chartered Internal Audit Leader (QIAL) and Certified Risk Manager (CMIRM) and currently serves as a Board Observer for ALARM. A passionate advocate for the risk and assurance profession, he regularly contributes articles to Stronger, delivers regional workshops, speaks at conferences, and supports ALARM's professional and sector networks. He is particularly interested in the development of integrated assurance approaches that bring together audit, risk, and governance disciplines to help organisations make better-informed decisions and build long-term resilience.
ALARM has been a constant throughout my career. Its resources have supported me at every stage, and that’s why I trust the organisation completely. It holds a special place in my professional journey and in my heart.
Kelly Oliver
Kelly is the Head of Risk and Compliance at Newcastle University and joined ALARM around 10 years ago after leaving the private sector and recognising there was a gap in support for Risk Managers in the Higher Education (HE) sector, since joining Kelly has helped grow the offering and membership in this space. Kelly is the Chair for the ALARM HE Committee where she has helped facilitate seminars for HE members.
Kelly has worked in various roles and as well as bringing knowledge of internal audit, project management and risk, Kelly brings experience in training something we are very enthusiastic about at ALARM.
I am passionate about ALARM and the benefits it creates for its members; I will bring this passion as well as a desire to work collaboratively with the Board to the role. I will also provide a fresh perspective and add value to ideas and discussions, supporting the Board in discharging their role and continuing to improve the ALARM offering.