Our team
A group of associates, all of whom are names and faces you'll most certainly be familiar with. Each one of us being either current serving senior officers and elected Members, or former senior officers and elected Members. That's what makes our offer to you, totally unique.
Come back regularly to watch our pool of expertise grow....
Rich Wills
Lead Facilitator
Rich is the Managing Director of RWTA Ltd, a training and development delivery company that supports the public sector with its workforce development needs.
Prior to launching the company, Rich was a local government officer and civil servant for approximately 20 years. RWTA Ltd was created in 2020, and to date has delivered some form of training/development to over 90% of England's local authorities.
Rich will act as the lead facilitator for LGR Support Services.
Maxine Clark
Facilitator
Maxine’s career spans over 25 years, working in adult learning, training, development and family practice.
She is a qualified teacher and trainer and owns her own training and development company called The National Training Academy.
Maxine has delivered training to1,000s of workers across the country, and continues to work with a wide range of organisations in both the public and private sectors, including the NHS, Housing Associations, Local Authorities and the Voluntary Sector.
She is also a Local Councillor in Stoke on Trent so understands the political landscape as well as what is needed to ensure a successful learning experience.
Maxine is a session facilitator for LGR Support Services.
Cllr Abi Brown OBE
Associate - LGA Peer
Abi Brown juggled coalitions, government intervention, and record-breaking investments during her very unexpected time as a former leader and deputy leader of Stoke-on-Trent City Council. With extensive experience of leading in challenging scenarios, as well as also driving improvement, Abi now applies her expertise to help others across a range of sectors linked to local government. This includes chairing the LGA's Innovation and improvement Board since 2022, working with ministers from both the Conservative and Labour governments, as well as directly with leaders, cabinets, senior officers and commissioners to provide support, often across political lines, in councils under pressure.
A committed localist, Abi is a trustee of the Localis think tank and chairs a charitable foundation in her home city. She brings huge external experience of partnership working, including having sat on a range of bodies as varied as Arts Council England's Midlands Council, Midlands Engine, Stoke-on-Trent & Staffordshire's ICP, and Homes England. Abi received an OBE in the 2024 King's New Years Honours for services to local government (possibly the only time she's ever been speechless).
Cllr William Nunn
Associate - LGA Peer
William is the former leader of Breckland District Council and current National Lead Peer as well as playing a key role in the LGA’s Leadership Academy which seeks to encourage and develop aspiring councillors. Having previously served as the Chairman of the Improvement and Innovation Board as well as Regional Peer for the West Midlands.
William is widely recognised within local government as an exceptional council leader with a flair for innovation. He has coached and mentored many councillors of all political persuasions, including numerous council leaders, providing encouragement, inspiration and challenge. He has worked to provide support where member/officer relationships were fragile and relationships between the political groups had broken down, giving a clear sense of direction as to how the authority might move forward more positively. William has been a lead peer and has carried out more than 50 LGA Corporate Peer Reviews, he has a charismatic and visionary approach, never being afraid to offer constructive challenge where this is necessary and appropriate.
Cllr Jim McKenna
Associate - LGA Peer
Jim offers a unique perspective LGR Support Services, having experienced life as both a senior local government officer and Councillor.
He has been an Independent Cornwall Councillor for Penzance since May 2013. In May 2014 he was elected as the Council’s Cabinet Member for Adult Care, a position which he occupied until January 2017 when he stepped down, having been appointed as the Chair of Royal Cornwall Hospitals Trust, a role which he fulfilled until May 2018. He chaired Cornwall Council’s Economic Growth and Development Overview and Scrutiny Committee between 2019 and 2021.
Whilst on Cabinet he assumed a wide range of responsibilities including providing a political lead to the developing plans to integrate health and social care and successfully advocating for significant additional funding for Adult Care. He also served on the Safeguarding Adults Board, and the Health and Wellbeing Board, together with working closely with the senior management of the service.
Some of Jim’s other roles include establishing and Chairing the Penzance Place Shaping Group which brings together public, private and community representatives to co-ordinate regeneration activity in the town (2014 to date) and serving on the Penzance Deal Board from 2021 to date.
Between 1985 and 2009 he was a local authority officer, including roles as Director of Finance and Chief Executive. A CIPFA qualified accountant, Jim has participated in multiple LGA Peer Reviews. He has also mentored a number of Council Leaders.
Kath O'Dwyer
Associate - Structural Changes, Performance Improvement, Culture Change.
Kath brings 42 years of local government service with 8 years’ experience as a Local Authority Chief Executive. She is a qualified and experienced executive coach and mentor, and the Solace Board Chair.
As a Chief Executive Kath led the successful turnaround /improvement of two failing councils which were the subject of government & LGA concerns. This included the building of strong teams and the delivery of whole organisation structural change, performance improvement programmes, governance and financial management improvements and whole organisation culture change.
She has extensive experience of the delivery of effective and proactive management of significant organisational reputational issues with Government departments and regional and national partners.
She also brings experience of effective working within Combined Authority arrangements and a proven ability to work effectively in political environments with a range of political administrations.
Kath has a huge passion for public service, and local government in particular, and in improving organisational delivery to ensure the sustainable improvement of organisations, services, teams and individuals.
Simon Minas-Bound
Associate - Political Leadership & Change Expert
Simon is an accomplished leader with a unique combination of private sector, public sector experience and extensive local government leadership. He began his career in financial services, where he held management and learning & development roles, before transitioning into HR and organisational development, with key roles at the British Film Institute and in the outsourcing sector.
With a strong track record in leading large-scale change initiatives, through his own consultancy focused on leadership development, strategic change, enhancing organisational performance and transformation.
In local government, Simon has held several senior political leadership positions at Basingstoke & Deane Borough Council, including Cabinet Member, Group Leader, Deputy Leader, and Council Leader.
He has also demonstrated his commitment to collaboration through various partnership roles, including Chair of the multi authority Community Safety Partnership, Chair of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Police and Crime Panel, and as a member of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight NHS Integrated Care Board (ICB).
His skill in navigating political landscapes, fostering collaboration across public services, and implementing effective leadership practices provides strong support for driving meaningful change.
Peter Fleming OBE
Associate - Political Leadership & Transformation
Peter is a former elected politician and local government leader. With over two decades of experience driving transformative change, including his 18-year tenure as the Leader of Sevenoaks District Council resulted in significant financial and organisational achievements, earning both national and international recognition.
Peter led the Local Government Association’s work on Improvement and Innovation for almost a decade, including the move from central government inspection to Sector Led Improvement.
Peter is an independent consultant, associate, and Peer for the LGA, carrying out senior member mentoring, peer challenges, top team development, Social Media training, communication reviews, and bespoke work on behalf of councils.
Peter is a Best Value Commissioner for the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government.
Cllr Neil Prior
Associate - Leadership and Governance
Elected as an Independent County Councillor in May 2017, Neil served as Cabinet Member for Corporate Improvement and Communities at Pembrokeshire County Council, a Unitary Authority in Wales, for 8 years. In the first term of administration, he remodelled the council’s transformation programme, secured investment into technology innovation within the Authority, as well as being the lead on the council's first ever 'Programme for Administration' setting out the political aspirations for a coalition cabinet.
Neil is a passionate advocate for public services and believes in helping people achieve their full potential. He acts as a critical friend in a continuous quest for improvement and innovation, with particular interests in governance, organisational culture, partnership working and community engagement. With transformational experience in large public and private sector organisations, and as an experienced facilitator and coach utilising a range of thought-provoking and practical materials, Neil is able to help accelerate the progress of the individuals and teams attempting to lead in the complex public services landscape.
With a strong understanding of local government leadership, governance, and decision-making, and experience in designing and delivering leadership development programmes for leaders in the public sector, Neil brings huge credibility through his direct experience of being a Councillor. His work has involved engaging with elected members across all political parties, and he is able to create a collaborative learning environment.
In addition to his Councillor role, Neil is a facilitator and coach on both the Local Government Association and Welsh Local Government Association’s Leadership Programmes for Councillors, and holds a Non-Executive Director role with The Pobl Group, Wales’ largest Housing Association. He was a finalist in the LGIU Councillor Awards 2021.
Toby Savage
Associate - Transition, Transformation, and Leadership
Toby is a transition, transformation, and leadership expert with nearly 20 years of experience in local and regional government, including roles as an officer, elected member, and member peer.
He served on South Gloucestershire Council for 15 years, including as an elected member from 2015 to 2023. He was Council Leader from 2018 to 2023 and previously held senior scrutiny and executive roles. Toby was nationally recognised for his leadership during the Covid-19 pandemic.
From 2008 to 2014, he was Political Assistant to the Leader and Cabinet, leading on communications and policy development.
Toby played a key role in shaping English Devolution. He was a founding member of the West of England Combined Authority, serving as Deputy Mayor from 2019 to 2021, and helped negotiate its devolution deal.
He also helped establish the Western Gateway Pan-Regional Partnership, the UK’s first pan-regional powerhouse to span two countries, as founding Vice Chairman.
Through his work with the Local Government Association (LGA), Toby served as Vice Chair of the City Regions Board. He has also been a member of the Independent Improvement Board for the Cambridgeshire & Peterborough Combined Authority since 2022, supporting significant improvement and transformation.
Dominic Chessum
Associate - Communications Expert
Dominic is a communications and reputation management specialist with more than two decades of experience working in the media, and PR and communications industries.
His specialism is providing communications support to challenged organisations in highly complex, highly regulated sectors including Local Government, NHS, blue light services, and education.
He has developed and delivered the communications for organisations both entering and leaving regulatory support regimes and has led the communications for both large scale change and transformation, and cultural change programmes.
He is a seasoned trainer and delivers both communications and reputation management training to meet clients varying needs.
Kirsty Porter
Associate - Data Protection Lawyer
Kirsty is an accomplished Data Protection Lawyer at Nexa Law, with extensive experience in governance and compliance across the public sector. Having spent over eight years at Breckland District Council, she served as an Information Governance Officer and Data Protection Officer (DPO), overhauling information governance and data protection compliance for both Breckland District Council and South Holland District Council, ensuring regulatory assurance through rigorous audit processes. She is deeply committed to safeguarding personal data and appreciates the dedication required to uphold transparency and accountability in local government.
Her deep understanding of public sector operations enables her to navigate the complexities of governance requirements alongside data protection obligations. She understands the challenges of asset management for Councils whose records date back to before previous local government reorganisations.
Beyond data protection, Kirsty possesses expertise in governance, organisational culture, partnership working, and community engagement. She has a strong grasp of local government decision-making processes and has successfully delivered information governance and data protection training programmes for public sector leaders.
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