Wessex

Clare is the national strategic lead for GL Hearn’s Rate Payment Management service incorporating the Client Monies function. She is also responsible for compliance across all of GL Hearn’s services, including RICS regulation, AML, GDPR and GL Hearn’s business management system.

Before joining GL Hearn in 2015, Clare spent 10 years at Portsmouth City Council, completing her IRRV Diploma in 2013 and becoming Local Taxation Assistant Manager in 2014. During that time, she was responsible for the legislative and technical functions of the rating and recovery teams. She has utilised this experience to build on the processes and procedures of GL Hearn’s rate payment team and attracting more clients to this key service.

Moving to the private sector in 2015, Clare now oversees the smooth delivery of business rate payments for GL Hearn’s clients, facilitating the transfer of over £1.5bn annually to Local Authorities. She has continued to be engaged in IRRV activities, supporting multiple colleagues at GL Hearn through qualification and participating in Performance Awards and local events.

George has worked in Revenues since 2012 when he joined Capita at Southampton City Council as a Revenue Apprentice. In 2016 George became an IRRV Technician. During his time in Southampton George undertook various roles in Council Tax and NNDR.

George moved to Winchester City Council in September 2016, became a Revenues Team Leader in 2018 and then Revenues Manager in 2021. In 2020 George completed the IRRV Diploma qualification.

George has been an active member of the IRRV Wessex Association Executive Committee since November 2017 and undertook the role of Secretary since 2019, becoming president in 2023.

George can be contacted at gdraper@winchester.gov.uk

Terri is the Service Lead for Revenues & Benefits at Winchester City Council where she has worked for over 30 years. The earlier part of her career was spent in Revenues - Council Tax and Non Domestic Rates. In more recent years this has broadened to include Benefits.

She can assist you with all matters concerning Council Tax, Business Rates, Business Improvement District Levy, Housing Benefits and Council Tax Reduction.

Terri has been a fully qualified member of the IRRV since 1999 and has held a number of associated positions –

• Secretary of the Wessex Association Executive - 2016 to 2019 & 2023 to date
• President of the Wessex Association Executive – 2019 to 2023
• Vice-Chair of the Association Representatives Meeting - 2019 to 2021
• Chair of the Association Representatives Meeting – 2021 to date

She has thoroughly enjoyed all roles.

Terri can be contacted at thorner@winchester.gov.uk

Tim has worked in Revenues since 2010, starting his career as a Revenues Officer at Woking Borough Council, where he worked in various roles in Revenues and Debt Recovery. He then joined the Council Tax team at London Borough of Hackney, before returning to Woking Borough Council and carrying out the roles of Training Officer and Senior Revenues Officer. Tim has been Revenues Team Leader at Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council since 2018.

Tim is a Technician member of the institute and has been a member of the Executive Committee since 2019. He has also previously been involved with the institute in other capacities, including as a member of the Local Taxation and Revenues Faculty Board and as a contributor to Insight magazine.

Tim can be contacted atTim.Morris@basingstoke.gov.uk

Mark has an extensive background in local government, having served in Dorset since 1990. Currently, he holds a pivotal position as the Business and Finance Lead within the Dorset Council Corporate Resources Directorate.

With a strong academic foundation, Mark is a qualified accountant and holds full memberships with both CIPFA and IRRV, reflecting his commitment to professional excellence.

Over the years, he has gathered diverse experience, including being an ILM qualified Coach and Mentor, actively contributing to the Dorset Council Emergency Planning Team, and serving as an editorial board member of the CIPFA Technical Information Service Local Taxation Panel.

Additionally, Mark has taken on responsibilities outside of his core roles, such as being a valuable advisor to the Local Government Association during the implementation of tax credits, acting as an assessor for the IRRV RQF qualification and serving as Deputy Chair of the Dorset Police's custody visiting team, showcasing his dedication to broader community support.

In his involvement with the IRRV Wessex Branch, Mark wears multiple hats, serving as the branch auditor, and webmaster,  further demonstrating his commitment to professional development and advancement within the field.

Mark can be contacted at mark.payne1@dorsetcouncil.gov.uk

Chris is currently retired from local government after over 40 years’ service to Bournemouth Borough Council. 

He started his local government career in 1976 at the age of 16 as the Borough Treasurer’s Department Junior. Following a number of positions in both Revenues and Benefits, he ended his career as Revenue & Benefits Client Manager, responsible for managing the Council’s relationship with its outsourced service provider.

Chris studied for The Rating & Valuation Association's (the predecessor of the IRRV) examinations, winning the Central London Branch of the British Institute of Management's prize for "Management & Administration" in his Final Part II examinations. Chris subsequently studied for both a Certificate and a Diploma in Management Studies.

He has been an active member of the Wessex Association for many years. He lectured for a short while at Southampton Institute (now Southampton Solent University) on "Law of Rating" when courses were run there.  

Chris is also involved on a voluntary basis with the Institute of Advanced Motorists (IAM Roadsmart).  His other interests include running, cycling, walking and watching ice hockey.

Chris can be contacted at chrisfdale@yahoo.co.uk

Natalie embarked on her professional journey in the Benefits Section in the early 1990s. She commenced her career at West Dorset District Council, via various revenues and benefits partnerships whichevolved into Dorset Council. Throughout hercareer, Natalie has undertaken diverse roles, progressing to handling intricate queries, appeals (specifically in Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support), and managing Discretionary Housing Payments.

In 2004, Natalie achieved her IRRV Technician certification. Notably, she served as a certified assessor for the IRRV RQF qualification atthe IRRV Training Centre within her employing council.

Accumulating a wealth of knowledge in Benefits administration over the years, Natalie takes pleasure in imparting her expertise to colleagues and newcomers alike. She actively mentors an IRRV apprentice, nurturing talent within her field.

Excited about her involvement with the IRRV Wessex Branch, Natalie eagerly anticipates engaging with peers and contributing to professional development initiatives.

Beyond her professional endeavours, Natalie finds solace in outdoor pursuits like walking, cherishing moments with her canine companion, and indulging in the art of dressmaking.

Andrew Hetherton is a Director of Andrew Hetherton Consulting Ltd and business rates consultant. He has 26 years of experience as a business rates consultant in private practice. Having previously worked for GL Hearn where he was Head of Business Rates he has been involved with business rates appeals throughout the United Kingdom and in the Irish Republic. Prior to that, he spent a short time working for the Valuation Office Agency (VOA). Andrew is also the Managing Editor of the IRRV publications‘Insight’ and‘Valuer’

Andrew is a member of the Council of the Institute of Revenues, Rating and Valuation (IRRV) and past National President. He is also Chairman of the Professional Conduct Committee and a member of the Governance Board supporting the IRRV Level 4 Apprenticeship in Revenues and Welfare Benefits. Previous roles include Chairman of the Law and Research Committee and Valuation Faculty Board. He is also a Past President of the Rating Surveyors’ Association (RSA) and has served on the Committee of the RSA since 2008. Currently he is also one of the IRRV representatives on both the Professional Bodies Liaison Group, the Valuation Tribunal Users Group and the Upper Tribunal (Lands Chamber) User Group. He is also a member of the RICS Local Taxation and Policy Group.

He has a particular interest in the out-of-town retail warehouses sector and is Chairman of Accessible Retail Ltd which represents the interests of landlords, occupiers, developers and investors in that sector. He has experience of dealing with a wide range of property types and has co-ordinated and represented the interests of a large number of occupier and landlord clients on business rates matters across numerous rating lists.

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Andrew can be contacted at andrewhethertonconsultingltd@btinternet.com

www.linkedin.com/in/andrewhetherton

Lyndsey joined the world of Revenues and Benefits in September 2002 with Christchurch Borough Council. During her time at Christchurch she was involved with Council Tax, Non Domestic Rates, Recovery, Penalty Charge Notices, and Overpayment of Housing Benefit recovery.

In September 2010 Christchurch Borough Council joined with East Dorset and North Dorset in the Stour Valley Partnership. She has been seconded into various roles within Revenues and Systems Support since then.

During 2015 the Stour Valley Partnership joined with Borough of Poole to form the Stour Valley and Poole Partnership. During this time she was working within the Systems and Business Processing team as well as spending a period of time within Customer Services before being seconded into the role of the Business and Development Manager. Since April 2023, Lyndsey has been the Performance and Resilience Manager for the Revenues and Benefits section at BCP Council.

Lyndsey has completed her NVQ in Local Taxation and is also a qualified RQF (NVQ/QCF) assessor.

Lyndsey joined the Executive after the 2012 AGM and has been both branch secretary and President.

Outside of work Lyndsey enjoys spending time with her two young children and introducing them to the world of horse riding and swimming.

Lyndsey can be contacted at lyndsey.dobbs@bcpcouncil.gov.uk

Ian joined the Isle of Wight Council in 1995 following a complete career change having previously been a budding professional footballer playing for Southampton Football Club Youth Team and Reserve Teams, as well as playing for and trialing with York City and Queens Park Rangers, until an injury forced an end to a possible professional career.

Ian's first role in the authority was as a Non Domestic Assistant, initially on a temporary three month contract. This was extended for a year and then led to a permanent position within Revenues. He made the transfer to Benefits a few years later and has worked in a number of Revenue and Benefit administration areas progressing through the job roles in Revenues, Benefits and Customer Services environment to a Senior Manager level.

In more recent years, Ian has managed a Corporate Organisational Intelligence team in addition to retaining his strategic lead role for Revenues and Benefits before moving to his current role as a Senior Manger within the Adult Social Care directorate leading Partnership and Support services and the work with health in terms of Integrated Care Partnership delivery. As an experienced Revenues, Benefits, Customer Services, Transformation Manager and senior manager, he has lead both complex and diverse statutory service areas, and organisational change project implementation programme management teams that has been accountable for various transformation projects across multi agency work streams including local authority and health agendas.

Ian was awarded a Queens British Empire Medal (BEM) in the New Years honour in December 2021, for services to the community by leading the community covid response in the Isle of Wight.

He studied for the IRRV Technician qualification course and qualified in June 2007 and a few years later continued the professional qualification challenge by qualifying for his IRRV Diploma in 2013. Ian has also gained a level 7 award in Institute of Leadership and Management Studies and is a qualified PRINCE 2 Registered Practitioner.

Ian has been a member of the Wessex Association since 2007

Outside of work he enjoys participating in a range of sports, particularly golf .... the days of playing football are now over.

Ian can be contacted at ian.lloyd@iow.gov.uk

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ian-lloyd-bem-3446aa46/

Michelle started her career as a Revenues Officer at Eastleigh Borough Council and progressed to Senior Revenues Officer. She then joined Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council as a Senior Debt Recovery Officer, where she spent the last 5 years of her career. During her almost 17 years working in a local authority environment, she achieved an IRRV Level 3 Diploma in Local Taxation, Benefits & Advice as well as completing both her HCEG Taking Control of Goods Level 2 and Level 3.

Since April 2022 Michelle joined Bristow & Sutor as a Client Solutions Manager. Michelle has the unique experience of understand the challenges her clients face in Local Government.

Michelle can be contacted at michellegiles@bristowsutor.co.uk

Erin started work for the Isle of Wight Council in 2013 upon return to the Island after university where she studied Law and French. She began as a Benefits Assistant, and within her time in the department she worked across Housing Benefit, Local Assistance Scheme and Blue Badges. She completed an IRRV Level 3 Diploma in Local Taxation and Benefits, and in recent years has progressed into management positions. Erin recently completed a Level 5 Diploma in Management and Leadership and has also begun to get involved with the management of the Revenues service.

Erin joined the Executive this year and is looking forward to meeting Revenues and Benefits colleagues across the south coast.

Outside of work, Erin enjoys spending as much time as possible at the beach or watching live music.