02
AYRSHIRE UPDATE
Meet our board of management
The members who make up our Board of Management come from all walks of life, with a variety of skills, and diverse experience.
What they have in common, however, is their passion for education for all, and the drive to provide the best opportunities for our
students at Ayrshire College. Their skills and experience, drawn from both public and private sector industries, will help us to meet
the needs of employers in Ayrshire and across Scotland. The Board of Management are committed to delivering the highest standards
of corporate governance through continued leadership, direction and support in setting and achieving our strategic objectives.
Here, we introduce our board members. Please feel free to stop and speak to them when you see them around the campuses.
Willie Mackie
Chair and
Regional Lead
Willie became a Fellow
of the Chartered Institute
of Bankers in Scotland in
2003 and for a period of
11 years, was responsible
for Clydesdale Bank’s
corporate, agricultural
and private banking business across Ayrshire
and Arran. In 2013, he established Willie Mackie
Consulting Limited, providing business
consultancy services to a wide range of clients
predominantly based in Ayrshire.
He holds a variety of high profile positions within
the Ayrshire community, including president of
the Ayrshire Chamber of Commerce and Industry
and chairman of Taste Ayrshire.
Willie is a member of the Ayrshire Economic
Partnership and a board member on both East
Ayrshire Community Planning Partnership
and East Ayrshire Business Enterprise.
Carol Kirk
Chair of Learning
and Teaching
Committee
Carol, a former board
member of James Watt
College, is Corporate
Director (Education and
Skills) of North Ayrshire
Council. She taught in
Glasgow, Moray and Central regions before
joining the Educational Development Service
in Strathclyde. Following local government
reorganisation, Carol worked in senior officer
posts in North Lanarkshire and Stirling before
joining North Ayrshire as Head of Service
for Inclusion in 2005.
She chaired the National Partnership Review of
Educational Leadership following the Donaldson
Report and is currently the National Champion
for Attainment of Looked After Children and
a member of the ADES Executive.
Tom Wallace
Chair of Finance
Committee
Kilmarnock born and
bred, Tom brings many
years of diverse
experience to his role
as Finance Chair.
After qualifying as a
Chartered Accountant
from Glasgow University, he held a number
of senior roles at blue chip companies within
finance, business, compliance and IS sectors.
For most of his career, he has been based
in Ayrshire, but he has also worked in
Connecticut, USA.
Tom is now Business and Compliance
Manager for Diageo Plc
Dr Waiyin Hatton
Vice Chair, Chair
of Estates and
New Campus
Development
Committee
Waiyin has extensive
leadership experience
across the public and
not-for-profit sectors in
health care in England, Scotland and Wales.
She spent 16 years as Chief Executive of Ayrshire
& Arran before setting up her own consultancy.
Waiyin is a non-executive board member
on several organisations, including British
Swimming, Scottish Chamber of Commerce
and the University of West of Scotland.
She is vice-president of Ayrshire Chamber
of Commerce and chair of its Business Forum.
A former karate internationalist, she is chair
of Ayrshire Sportsability Trust, an organisation
she co-founded to promote health and
well-being through sports for children
and young people with a disability.
Barbara Graham
Vice Chair of
Learning and
Teaching
Committee
A life-long resident of
Ayrshire, Barbara was
educated at Kilmarnock
Academy and Glasgow
and Strathclyde
Universities. The former director of Strathclyde
University’s Careers Service now holds a diverse
range of high profile positions within the local
community.
Barbara is currently an adult education tutor
at Strathclyde University’s Centre for Lifelong
Learning and a Community Ambassador for
Marie Curie Cancer Care.
She is also training to become a Reader
in the Church of Scotland.
Alan Walker
Chair of Audit
Committee
Ayr-born Alan was
educated at Belmont
Academy and after
completing his
apprenticeship,
spent 30 years working
in the electronics,
software and power tool industries.
He spent five years in Boston, USA, as Director
of Operations for Digital, and then joined the
Black and Decker DeWalt Corporation as firstly,
Vice President and Chief Information Officer,
and then Operations Vice President.
He is now managing director of Maxiim
Consumer Electronics Ltd, a position
he has held for the last five years.
Heather Dunk
Principal and Chief
Executive
Heather was appointed
Principal of Ayrshire
College on 1 August,
2013 and brings a wealth
of experience to the role.
Prior to taking up her new
appointment she was
Principal of Kilmarnock College, a position she
held for five years. Heather is a board member
of the Community Planning Partnerships (East,
North and South) in Ayrshire and a member
of the Ayrshire Economic Partnership Board.
She has held high profile roles in education
and is a member of the Access and Inclusion
Committee of the Scottish Funding Council.
Heather has also held a number of key roles in
the private sector including Director of Research
and Education for an educational software
company.
Nicki Beveridge
Chair - Human
Resources and
Organisational
Wellbeing
Committee
Nicki has a wealth of
human resources and
business experience,
gained through a variety
of corporate and operational roles including
her most recent position as head of HR for
a large public sector organisation. She has set
up her own business delivering independent
HR consulting and coaching services.
Previously, she served as Vice Chair of Kilmarnock
College Board of Management as well as Chair
of the Organisational Development Committee
and supported the development of Ayrshire
College, through her work on the Ayrshire
Partnership Board.
Gordon James
Vice Chair of Audit
Committee
Gordon has more than
15 years’ experience in
purchasing, logistics and
supply chain systems in
both public and private
sectors.
A former James Watt
College board member, he was supply chain
manager for a major UK electronics business,
overseeing manufacturing, development,
outsourcing, warehousing and transportation.
Gordon became Logistics Director for the
National Health Service’s National Procurement
division in 2009, responsible for purchasing and
supply chain for clinical, medical and janitorial
products for NHS Scotland.