Executive Team
Advisory Panel
Audit & Risk Assurance Committee
About us
We have legal powers to look into complaints about public services and independent care providers in Wales. We also investigate complaints that local government councillors have breached their authority’s code of conduct.
We are independent of all government bodies and our service is impartial and free of charge.
We have a team of people who consider and investigate complaints as well as work to support good practice by the bodies in our jurisdiction.
Executive Team
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Michelle Morris Public Services Ombudsman for Wales |
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Having taken up duties as the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales on 1 April 2022, Michelle was previously Managing Director of Blaenau Gwent County Borough Council. Prior to that she worked for Highland Council in Scotland, for 10 years, where she held the position of Monitoring Officer and Deputy Chief Executive. Before moving to Scotland she held senior roles in a number of local authorities in Wales. Michelle is originally from Pembrokeshire and recently moved back to the County. She studied at Cardiff University, Cranfield Institute and the University of Glamorgan and has an MSc. in Marketing and an MBA. |
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Chris Vinestock Chief Operating Officer & Director of Improvement |
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Chris was appointed Chief Operating Officer in 2014. With a degree in economics and finance, and an MBA from Cardiff University, Chris is a qualified accountant. Before joining the Public Services Ombudsman for Wales he worked for Cardiff and Swansea Councils in a number of senior roles covering accountancy, audit, engineering, highways and transportation. Prior to his appointment he was Head of Service for Highways & Transportation in Swansea. Chris chaired the Human Resources Group of the Ombudsman Association and has worked closely with the Association to develop service standards for Ombudsman schemes across the UK. |
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Katrin Shaw Chief Legal Adviser & Director of Investigations |
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Katrin was brought up in Cardigan in West Wales, attended Sheffield Hallam University where she gained a BA in law. She was admitted as a Solicitor in 1996 and worked as a local government lawyer before she joined the Ombudsman’s office as an Investigator in 2001. Since then, Katrin has held managerial roles in the office and is now the PSOW’s Chief Legal Adviser & Director of Investigations. Katrin was Chair of the Ombudsman Association’s Legal Interest Group from 2016 until 2019 and is a member of the UK’s Administrative Justice Council. She was appointed as Acting Standards Commissioner by the Northern Ireland Local Government Commissioner for Standards in October 2020 and volunteers for Neath Port Talbot Age Connects. |
Advisory Panel
The Advisory Panel is a non‑statutory forum whose main role is to support the Ombudsman in providing leadership and good governance of the office.
The Advisory Panel provides specific advice and support to the Ombudsman on:
- vision, values and purposes;
- strategic direction and planning; and
- operational performance, accountability & delivery.
The Advisory Panel also brings an external perspective to assist in the development of policy and practice.
The Advisory Panel is an advisory only body, and does not make decisions in its own right. The Advisory Panel Review of the Year 2022-23 can be found here.
Audit and Risk Assurance Committee
The Audit and Risk Assurance Committee supports the Ombudsman by reviewing the comprehensiveness and reliability of assurances on governance, risk management, the control environment and the integrity of financial statements and the annual report.
The 2022-23 Audit and Risk Assurance Committee Annual Review can be found here.
Advisory Panel / Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Members
Advisory Panel Terms of Reference
Audit and Risk Assurance Committee – Terms of Reference
Policy on Declarations of Interests by Advisory Panel and Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Members
Ian Williams
Advisory Panel Member / Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
Ian was the Group Chief Executive of Hendre until he retired in July 2017. Ian is a Chartered Surveyor and a Fellow of the Institute of Housing. He worked for almost 40 years in the Housing Association movement in South Wales and developed Hendre into one of the largest traditional housing associations in Wales providing Housing Care and support to around 20,000 people, employing over 1,250 staff.
Ian has served in numerous non-executive roles including Chair of Community Housing Cymru and Chair of the Welsh Housing Partnership.
Ian Williams Declaration of Interests
Carys Evans
Advisory Panel Member
Carys was Head of Insight and Data at S4C until 2019, utilising a range of qualitative and quantitative techniques to analyse audience trends and changing needs. She has also worked in the past for WJEC, ITV Wales and the Welsh Language Commissioner.
Carys has served as a Board Member for Wales Consumer Council from 2000 to 2008 and for Audiences Wales between 2006 and 2015.
Carys Evans Declaration of Interests
Joanest Varney-Jackson
Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
A graduate of UCW Aberystwyth, Joanest was admitted as a solicitor in 1982. Originally from Pembrokeshire, a somewhat nomadic lifestyle followed from a career in the legal departments of various local authorities in Wales and England. In 1992 she returned to Wales from the London Borough of Harrow. In 2000 Joanest joined the newly established National Assembly for Wales working primarily in legislative drafting and scrutiny until retiring in 2017.
Joanest Varney-Jackson Declaration of Interests
Jane Martin CBE
Advisory Panel Member / Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
Dr Jane Martin joined the Advisory Board of PSOW in September 2019. Until January 2017 she was Local Government Ombudsman and Chair of the Commission for Local Administration in England. She was the first Executive Director of the Centre for Public Scrutiny. Now a member of the Committee on Standards in Public Life and a non-executive member of the Board of the Office for Legal Complaints for England and Wales, she was awarded a CBE in the New Year’s Honours List 2017 for services to administrative justice and transparency in local government.
Jane Martin Declaration of Interests
John McSherry
Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
John worked for the Admiral Group Limited for 27 years in a variety of roles including leading Motor Claims departments and handling catastrophic bodily injury claims. He has represented Admiral on external committees such as the MIB technical committee and ABI property claims committee. He was Head of Household claims and Claims Ancillary products until leaving in March 2019. John holds a BSc (Open) degree including Business Management, Personal Finance and Economics and is an Associate of the Chartered Insurance Institute (ACII) and a member of the CII’s Swansea Council. He is currently Operations Manager for Avantia Home Protect.
John McSherry Declaration of Interests
Mike Usher
Advisory Panel Member / Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
Mike Usher retired in 2020 from Audit Wales, where he was a member of the Executive Leadership Team and the strategic lead for the Auditor General’s financial and value for money external audit work across central government and NHS Wales. He was also the Director of Investigative Studies, responsible for examining concerns about public services raised by Senedd members, MPs and the public. Prior to joining Audit Wales on its creation in 2005, Mike was a Director of Audit at the National Audit Office, based in Cardiff.
Mike is an experienced non-executive director with particular expertise in corporate governance, risk management, financial strategy and the proper conduct of public business. He previously served as a Trustee of the Institute of Cancer Research in London, where he also chaired the Audit Committee. Mike is currently a co-opted Board member of Newport City Homes, and he also serves on the Audit & Risk Committee of Christ’s Hospital School in Sussex.
Mike Usher Declaration of Interests
Bernie Davies
Advisory Panel Member
Bernie is a TEDx Speaker, Bestselling Author, Diversity and Entrepreneurship Leader, with a previous legal career in property. She is Past Chair of the Neath Chamber of Trade, Board member for Black History Wales and Fio Arts Charity, Ambassador for the Commonwealth Entrepreneurs Club, Business Wales and Equal Power Equal Voice Mentor, Welsh Government Excelerator Coach and Founder of Bernie Davies Global. Bernie supports entrepreneurship programmes with a focus on diversity, for major banks, universities and government agencies. On United Nations Human Rights Day, 2022, Bernie was awarded the prestigious title of Ambassador for Peace by the Universal Peace Federation for her work in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. Bernie has been and continues to be a regular BBC Radio Wales contributor and BBC and ITV media expert.
Bernie Davies Declaration of Interests
Dave Tosh OBE
Audit & Risk Assurance Committee Member
Dave was Director of Resources for the Senedd Commission until he retired in January 2022. Dave spent 10 years at the Senedd and prior to this he has worked in
Local Government, the Aerospace Industry and served for 12 years as a Commissioned Officer in the Royal Air Force. Dave’s professional background is in ICT. Since retirement, Dave has taken up a part-time role as a leadership training and development consultant. Dave also sits as a Magistrate.
Dave Tosh Declaration of Interests
Nia Roberts
Advisory Panel Member
Nia has worked in several roles across the public and private sector, most recently as Head of Research and Innovation Engagement at the Welsh Government. She is a European Patent Attorney, a Chartered Physicist and a Member of the Institute of Physics. Originally from Anglesey, Nia is a Welsh speaker and lives in Llandudno, North Wales. Nia has served in a number of non-executive roles including as a member of the Engineering & Physical Sciences Research Council Strategic Advisory Network, a member of the Institute of Physics Wales Committee and previously as a Chair of Governors of a primary school.
Nia Roberts Declaration of Interests
Sue Phelps MBE
Advisory Panel Member
Sue has worked in the voluntary sector in England and Wales for over 40 years. Moving to Wales in 1986, she worked at Mencap before taking time out to raise two daughters. Sue began work with the Alzheimer’s Society in 1995 as an administrator following the death of her grandfather who had Alzheimer’s disease and held a number of service development, management and leadership roles before becoming Country Director for Wales in September 2017. Working alongside people affected by dementia, with their voice at the heart, she campaigned for and championed the rights of everyone with dementia and those who care for them, promoting the need for investment in research to give hope for the future. Sue was delighted to be awarded an MBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2017 for services to dementia in Wales. Keen on sport, Sue has been an Independent Director on the Cricket Wales Board since 2018 and serves as Chair of the EDI Sub-Committee and a member of the Finance Sub-Committee.
Sue Phelps Declaration of Interests