5 New Commissioners for the EHRC
Five new Commissioners will bring their skills and experience to the Equality and Human Rights Commission, the Government Equalities Office (GEO) it was announced today (30th May 2018). The Board of Commissioners is the highest level decision-making body in the organisation, responsible for the strategic oversight of the Commission. The new Commissioners are: Suzanne Baxter, Pavita Cooper, Alasdair Henderson, Helen Mahy CBE and Mark McLane.
About the new Commissioners
Suzanne Baxter
Suzanne is an experienced board member, finance professional and Chair.
She has been actively involved in the national diversity and women on boards’ agendas and was Deputy Chair and an Advisory Board member to the Business in the Community (BITC) gender equality campaign for over 10 years.
Suzanne has extensive FTSE 250 board experience gained in executive and non-executive roles and is currently a non-executive director of WHSmith plc, where she is also Chair of the Audit Committee. She was formerly Group Finance Director of Mitie Group plc, and her earlier career was spent at Serco and in the accountancy profession with PwC and Deloitte, where she specialised in corporate finance and assurance.
Her other roles have included Chair of BITC in the South West and Chair of the Business Services Association.
She was awarded the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales’ (ICAEW) first Inspiring Confidence in Business Award for embedding sustainability and diversity into business strategy and was recognised as Business Woman of the Year in the South West in 2014.
Suzanne is Fellow of the ICAEW and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Pavita Cooper
Pavita Cooper is recognised as a leading talent and diversity expert; she has over 25 years’ experience as an executive talent leader across a range of multi-sector global blue-chip organisations, including Shell, Barclays and Lloyds Banking Group.
Pavita has acted as an advisor to CEOs, executive teams and business leaders across multiple sectors and geographies.
Pavita is a passionate advocate of greater diversity; she campaigns tirelessly to change the face of British business.
She is a regular speaker on women in business, increasing ethnic diversity and the acceleration of diverse talent in the pipeline to the C-Suite and Boardroom.
Pavita is the daughter of immigrants; her early life experiences shaped her dedication to strive for greater fairness and equality for all parts of society.
She is a Steering Committee member of the 30 Percent Club, in addition she chairs CMI Race.
Pavita was named Woman of the Year at the Asian Business Awards in September 2017
Alasdair Henderson
Alasdair Henderson is a barrister at 1 Crown Office Row, specialising in public law, human rights, employment law and equality law.
He previously worked in Rwanda for International Justice Mission, investigating cases of land rights violations.
He has been involved in several of the most high-profile public inquiries of recent years, including the Al-Sweady Inquiry, Leveson Inquiry, Litvinenko Inquiry and the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse.
Helen Mahy CBE
Helen is chair of the Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited and MedicX Fund Limited, both of which are companies listed on the main market on the London Stock Exchange.
She is also a non-executive director of SSE plc and Bonheur ASA, the latter being listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. She was, until she retired in 2013, Group Company Secretary and General Counsel of National Grid plc for 10 years. At National Grid she was also executive sponsor of inclusion and diversity, about which she is passionate.
Helen has also been on the boards of Aga Rangemaster Group plc, Stagecoach Group plc and SVG Capital plc.
She qualified as a barrister and was an Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute.
She is also an accredited performance coach.
Helen is a member of the steering board of the Parker Review in to Ethnic Diversity of UK Boards.
She was also an advisory board member of Opportunity Now.
Helen was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday honours in 2015, for services to business and voluntary service particularly to the legal profession and Diversity in the Workplace.
Mark McLane
Mark McLane is the Head of Global Diversity and Inclusion for Barclays PLC.
Prior to Barclays, Mark was the Director of Diversity and Inclusion for Booz Allen Hamilton, a professional services firm in Washington DC.
He also held the position of Chief Diversity Officer for Whirlpool Corporation.
Mark holds the title of Master of The Guild of Human Resource Professionals and additionally holds leadership roles on the OutLeadership leadership committee and GayStar Business advisory board.
In 2014, 2015 and 2016 Mark was recognized by The Guardian’s global LGBT power list, the Financial Times 100 LGBT business leaders in London, and named to the top 50 global Diversity Executives by the Economist.
David Isaac, Chair of the Equality and Human Rights Commission, said "I’m thrilled to welcome our new Commissioners on board. They bring a wealth of experience both in terms of corporate knowledge as well as equality. I look forward to working with each of them to help shape the direction of the Commission and tackle the most pressing issues in our society."
The Chair and Commissioners are public appointments made by the Minister for Women and Equalities.
