CDER

Governance

Independent Advice. Perspective. Experience.

GOVERNANCE

All CDER Group operations are scrutinised by an Independent Advisory Group, made up of respected industry figures from the legal, government and debt advice sectors to ensure best practice standards are upheld and that we are maintaining our commitment to best practice, fairness and quality across our business in a measurable way.

Independent Advice

The Independent Advisory Group (IAG) was established in 2013 to provide JBW (now CDER Group) and its stakeholders with objective scrutiny, challenge and validation across its strategic, business and operational activities. The IAG has been newly expanded for 2021 with the addition of several experienced appointees, each having made a significant contribution to a public service that has direct relevance to our services and customers.

The Group’s work has been fundamental in further strengthening our position as a professional, trusted and ethical provider of high-quality enforcement services and continues to inform and drive our fairness framework.

The aim of the IAG is to support CDER Group in the provision of fair and flexible services by delivering the organisation’s social justice agenda and exceeding compliance standards.

As well as reviewing operational performance, IAG members (shown below) monitor complaints and their resolution, and ensure that, as far as possible, vulnerable customers are protected and all customers treated with dignity and respect.

JULIE SPENCE OBE, CStJ, QPM – IAG CHAIR

Julie brings a wealth of experience gained from a diverse and distinguished career to the role. Previously Chief Constable of Cambridgeshire Constabulary, Julie has also been President of the British Association for Women in Policing, Chair of Police Mutual, former Chair of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust (Mental & Community Health) and remains a Patron of Cambridge Search and Rescue.
Recognised for being a gender champion and for her leadership for the Queen Mother’s funeral, Julie is also the current Chair of Wellbeing of Women (Cambridge branch), President of Cambridgeshire Community Foundation, Patron and former Trustee of Ormiston Families charity, and an Ambassador of Cambridge 2030, an organisation that aims to deliver a more equal and inclusive city.

ROBERT WILSON

Robert is the Chief Executive of the Institute of Money Advisers, a membership organisation for free sector money advisers and he is committed to improving quality and standards in the profession. Since 1987, he has fulfilled key roles in independent advice services, Citizens Advice, local government and as chair of a trustee board. A MBA-qualified senior leader, Robert successfully manages partnerships and strategic relationships with government, regulator and finance industry stakeholders.

Abdul Rob Photo

ABDUL ROB

Abdul is a managing partner of SMM Media, a leading independent publishing and consultancy company specialising in education, careers and the advancement of cultural diversity, equality and inclusion. As a former civil servant, he spent 27 years working in HM Prison Service, The Home Office, Government Office for London, The National Offender Management Service and The Ministry of Justice. He was a Non – Executive Director for The Civil Service Race Forum (CSRF) and has been recognised for his contribution towards race equality in the public sector and criminal justice system with awards from The Home Office, The Muslim Chaplains Association and The Annual Perrie Lecture Awards for HM Prison Service.

Jez Alcock Photo

JEZ ALCOCK

Jez has spent his career supporting vulnerable individuals having started his social work career with Derbyshire County Council back in 1980, specialising in complex family care and youth offending cases; serving also as a Guardian Ad Litem (making independent recommendations to the Family Court). Subsequently at Barnardo’s, the UK’s largest children’s charity, he ran a Family Centre for 10 years, before being the Deputy Director in the Midlands and afterwards holding central leadership roles. Awarded the President’s Certificate for outstanding service, Jez left Barnardo’s after 24 years to become Chief Executive at Healthwatch Nottinghamshire; an independent government funded organisation, representing the interests of patients and social care residents.

Peter Williams photo

MAJOR GENERAL PETER WILLIAMS CMG OBE

Peter worked for over thirty years in the military and was involved in a very wide spectrum of roles demanding leadership, strategic planning, teamwork and communication skills, mainly in operational, intelligence and military diplomatic settings. He has always focused on delivering solutions that are ethical and fair to all parties and enthusiastically supports CDER Group’s commitment to social responsibility and its fairness agenda.

Social Responsibility

The success of our business depends on maintaining our reputation as a responsible and trusted provider of services for our clients, customers, employees and the communities in which we operate. For this reason, we take corporate social responsibility extremely seriously and apply three core principles that are designed to promote social value across the entire organisation.

  1. Accountable: policies and practices must deliver measurable benefits balanced across all stakeholders
  2. Transparent: clear procedures, open standards and independent scrutiny
  3. Ethical: balanced, responsive, intelligence-led practices to deliver positive outcomes for clients and customers

These principles are embedded across CDER’s end-to-end business model to ensure business strategy, innovation initiatives and operational practices reflect our responsibilities to all stakeholders, delivering tangible benefits to clients, individuals, the environment and the industry.

Commitment to these responsibilities is measured every day through our Service Quality Dashboards.