Running the Scheme

Anh is a Company-appointed director of the Scheme and a member of the Association of Corporate Treasures and The Chartered Institute for Securities & Investment. He has worked for National Gas Transmission as Head of Treasury, Pensions and Insurance since 2022, having previously undertaken similar roles at Environmental Resources Management, Imperial College London and BP. 

Anh’s experience in trading, treasury and corporate finance supports the Trustee in ensuring the Scheme is well managed and supported by the Company for the benefit of our members.

Representing Independent Governance Group (IGG), Karein has over 20 years’ experience in the pensions industry, working with a variety of organisations including large multi-national manufacturers, family businesses, universities and charities. The schemes she has worked with range in size from £4m to over £3bn.

A qualified actuary, Karein’s approach to trusteeship is characterised by open, honest conversation and a practical, hands-on approach. She has held trustee roles as a Chair, board member or sole trustee for over 20 pension schemes and has chaired governance committees. In these roles, she has managed scheme changes, negotiated complex valuations, initiated and implemented overall funding and investment strategy reviews, carried out fiduciary manager selection exercises and adviser reviews, redesigned member communications and implemented additional member options. Karein is fully accredited by the Association of Professional Pension Trustees.

Born and raised on Tyneside, John has had a long career in the energy industry, joining the finance department of The Gas Board in 1978. He moved to the tax department for Transco Plc in 2000, before it became part of National Grid Plc in 2002. He spent the final 20 years of his 44-year career working as an indirect tax manager, specialising in VAT. John moved to Scotland in 2015 and now lives in Leven in the Kingdom of Fife. 

John became a Trustee director in September 2011 and has worked on a number of reorganisations of the former British Gas Pension Scheme before arriving at The National Gas Transmission Pension Scheme we have now. His experience includes moving funds from an in-house investment company to an external investment manager, the sectionalisation of the Scheme, the recruitment of a paid executive team to take the Scheme forward, two bulk transfers out of the Scheme, three buy-ins, and the transfer of the Scheme’s administration from in-house to an external administration company. 

An accredited Trustee director, John holds the Pensions Management Institute Diploma in Pension Trusteeship. He is also a trustee of the Church of Scotland Pension Scheme and sits on the Employers’ Committee of the Scottish Housing Association Pension Scheme.

Outside the pensions world, he is Chairperson of the Management Board of ORE Valley Housing Association in Cardenden, Fife, a member of the Local Taxation Chamber within the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland, and the finance manager for a charity. Although never good at individual sports, he supports Sunderland Association Football Club.

Deborah was a Trustee director for the National Grid UK Pension Scheme from 2018 until the Scheme transfer. Throughout her life, she has acquired a diverse mixture of experience, skills, qualities and useful competencies. She has a degree in theology, a number of higher diplomas and a PGCE teaching certificate. She also holds certificates in counselling and cognitive behaviour therapy, social care and welfare, healthy lifestyle and I.T.

Deborah is a cognitive behaviour counsellor, a role which enables her to listen and communicate empathetically. She is also a trained reverend, a freelance teacher and project worker. As a teacher, she is used to communicating effectively in a group setting, pushing project formats to meet deadlines and achieving aims through planning, purpose and setting goals.

Deborah worked for British Gas in marketing and sales for a number of years, which provided her with commercial, financial and business skills.

Clare has worked in the pensions industry for many years, including 20 years with National Grid's in-house pensions teams. She worked primarily for the pensions administration team, providing support and advice to the Trustee and members, later joining the corporate pensions team as a pensions adviser. During that time, she attained several professional pension and financial qualifications and gained a detailed knowledge of the Scheme.

Clare really values the benefits payable under our Scheme. She became a Trustee director to use her knowledge and experience, working as part of the Trustee board to continue to safeguard benefits for all our Scheme members.

She says, ‘I feel very privileged to have served as a member-nominated director (MND) since 2018 and to be able to join the board of the new National Grid Gas Transmission Pension Scheme in the exciting and no doubt challenging times ahead.’

A Company-appointed director, Ian is Head of Insurance and Claims at National Gas. He has experience as an insurance and risk director, working mostly in the global rail and power (thermal and renewal) industries. He has experience of managing insurance and risk issues for major companies around the world and has been doing this role for National Gas since November 2022.

Ian’s experience in insurance and risk lends itself well to the role of Trustee director and can help identify any risks the Scheme may face and how these may be managed or mitigated to maintain and enhance the security of members’ benefits.