Audit, Risk Assurance and Finance Committee (ARAF Committee)

The ARAF Committee operates independently of Governing Council, the RICS Board and the Standards and Regulation Board. Its remit extends across the whole organisation, including the regulatory function. Each year it reports to Governing Council at its oversight meeting on how it has discharged its duties. The Committee is comprised of independent non-members and members of RICS.

The ARAF Committee monitors the integrity and effectiveness of RICS’ financial reporting, internal control and risk management systems, reviews anti-fraud measures and Raising Concerns policies and reviews the effectiveness of and recommends each year the appointment of the external auditor.

Chair

Mike joined the Department of Health and Social Security in 1979 straight from school, and spent his first 6 years in the Civil Service delivering services to customers. He then moved into regional management and then into a series of policy and then finance roles.
He is a Chartered Public Finance Accountant, and has held a number of challenging Finance Director roles, both corporate and operational. He became the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) at the Department for Work and Pensions in 2012. In April 2016 he became the CFO at the Ministry of Justice and from July 2017 to August 2020 he was also the Head of the Government Finance Function at HM Treasury, driving forward the agenda to substantially modernise and strengthen the finance function’s critical role at the heart of government, ensuring better political and business outcomes.
From August 2020 to January 2021 Mike was interim Permanent Secretary at the Ministry of Justice and from February 2021 to September 2021 was the Senior Responsible Officer, Borders Programme & Managed Quarantine at the Department of Health and Social Care. He left the Civil Service on 30 September 2021 after 42 years of public service and is now establishing a portfolio career, alongside his role as the President of the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy.

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Mike Driver - Chair

ARAF Committee membership

Simon Rose

With over 25 years senior finance leadership experience, Simon is a Charted Certified Accountant. His breath of sector experience covers Media, IT and Telecommunications with the last seven years in senior roles in the built environment. This has included risk, assurance and operational finance roles at companies such as the Wates Group, Intertek plc, Sungard Inc and Reed Elsevier plc. Simon is currently Group Head of Internal Audit and Risk at the Crest Nicholson plc, a prime listed FTSE 250 developer and house builder. He was previously Audit Committee Chair and Non-Executive Board Member for Two Saints, a leading housing association based in the UK.

Lorraine Gaytten

Lorraine Gaytten has been a chartered surveyor since 1989. She commenced her career as a quantity surveyor in private practice and local authority before moving into higher education in 1995. Initially teaching but after seven years at Birmingham City University moving into higher education management until 2021. She has been an APC chair, assessor, and auditor for more than 20 years and served two terms on the RICS UK Education Standards Board which came to an end in 2019 but she is still an active member of the university accreditation team. More recently she was the director of resources for the Devon Wildlife Trust, Interim Company Secretary for a housing association and is now an Interim Head of Facilities for the University of Birmingham (part time) whilst also undertaking part time tutoring role at the University College of Estate Management.

Sarah Walsh

Sarah has over 20 years of experience in risk leadership roles with expertise in risk management, strategy development, technology and operations, engineering and data and information governance. She is currently Director of Governance, Risk and Assurance at Telegraph Media Group and has worked in risk leadership roles in Guardian Media Group, Save the Children and Imperial College London. Sarah also works as a Consultant and is a Non Executive Board Member of the RCNi and Independent member of Audit and Risk Committees, including the Institute of Chartered Accountants for England and Wales and St John’s Ambulance. As a generalist risk specialist, her work spans diverse areas, including experience in digital transformation in Media and Education sectors. Prior to risk, Sarah worked as an Aerodynamicist solving complex mathematical and engineering problems for global Aerospace companies whilst completing a PhD in Aerodynamics in applied Computational Fluid Dynamics. Sarah has a track record in helping organisations understand and manage risks and opportunities in support of achieving and optimising strategic and operational objectives.

Tom Barclay BSc FRICS MBA CMCIH

Tom has been the Chief Executive of the Kingdom Group since 1st April 2023. A Chartered Quantity Survey; Tom was Group Director of Property & Development at the Wheatley Group, Scotland’s largest housing and care organisation, leading it to be the largest developer of social housing in the UK for 4 consecutive years. Prior to that he was the Group Chief Executive of Clyde Valley Group, based in Lanarkshire, which achieved No.5 in the Sunday Times Top 100 Companies to Work For in the UK. He is the former Co-Chair of the Scottish Government’s Joint Housing Policy & Delivery Group and is also formerly a member of RICS Global Board representing Scotland, RICS Scotland Chairman and RICS media spokesperson for housing. He currently serves as a member of RICS Global Audit, Risk, Assurance & Finance Committee. In 2023 Tom was appointed Chairman of the Herald Property Awards Judging Panel having served as a panel member for over a decade.

Peter Lewis

Peter is a Chartered Building Surveyor who leads a small practice in North Yorkshire, specialising in Heritage Property appraisals and project management of Conservation works. Prior to taking up a career in surveying Peter held a number of senior executive and non-executive roles with international manufacturing companies, which required strong financial and governance awareness in both public and private company environments. Through his role as Trustee of a UK pension scheme, he has gained an understanding of the strategies and regulations pertinent to schemes such as those run by RICS for its employees. Peter has been a member of the committee since 2021.