RMA – The Royal Marines Charity is delighted to announce three new appointments to its Board of Trustees.
Nick Banks, Emma Gray and Tom Tripp possess extensive experience drawn from the private, public and third sectors.
In extending a warm welcome to the new Trustees, CEO Jonathan Ball says: “We are extremely fortunate to have secured the expertise of Nick, Emma and Tom. They are three hugely accomplished individuals who now complete our 15-strong Board.
Their recruitment perfectly complements the calibre of those we are fortunate to have already on the Board We look forward greatly to working alongside them in our ongoing responsibility to ensure effective oversight of the Charity and to drive continuous improvement.
I am of the firm belief that we are now in a great position to assure the Corps Family that, with such a formidable team to guide us, we can continue to work relentlessly in providing them with the very best support possible.”
Nick Banks
“I feel privileged to be a Trustee with RMA and am passionately committed to the work it does to support the Royal Marines.”
Nick is a Director in PricewaterhouseCoopers’ (PwC) Audit practice based in London, having joined the company as a graduate in 2009. His expertise includes shaping strategy, delivering organisational change and managing complex groups of stakeholders across multiple sectors. He has delivered external audit, internal audit and other risk assurance services to high profile clients in the public and private sectors. For the past three years he has led a major transformation programme within PwC and prior to this, he was Chief of Staff to the Head of Assurance and member of the Management Board.
Nick received his MEng Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bristol, and is qualified as an Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales).
He is a keen sportsperson who enjoys golf, skiing and cycling. One of his proudest achievements is cycling the route of the Tour de France in 2014 and being part of a team that raised over £500,000 for charity.
Emma Gray
“I have a particular interest in supporting the families of our serving and veteran members and feel honoured to have been invited to be a Trustee.”
Emma is a military widow, who owns her own grief and adult coaching business based near Wellington, Somerset. Her Royal Marine husband, Lt Col Simon Gray RM, died of oesophageal cancer in 2016 when he was only 38 years-old, leaving Emma to raise their two young children alone. She was a Wills and Probate solicitor specialising in older and vulnerable clients and has since re-trained as a grief and trauma counsellor.
Her company, Rainbow Hunting, offers courses, workshops and one-to-one sessions for those needing to process personal issues, address death and life-changing events, or find joy during the darker days of life.
Emma is a National Director of Solicitors for the Elderly, a member of the Society of Trust and Estate Practitioners, a Bereavement Support Volunteer for a national grief charity, an Advisory Board member with the Society of Later Life Advisers, and an Ambassador for both Milspo (a Community Interest Company supporting entrepreneurial military spouses and families), and WAY (Widowed and Young), setting up a Military sub-group.
In her spare time, she loves seeking out new adventures with her girls and their dog, and being at the stables with their horse and pony.
Tom Tripp
“I’m a long-time Charity supporter with roots going back to C Group days. In my new role, I’m looking forward to being even more involved, and particularly to offer strategic planning, development and risk management advice whenever it’s needed.”
Tom is a chartered accountant and a Director and shareholder of Atkins Ferrie Services Ltd, an accountancy, registered auditor, tax compliance and strategic planning company based in Helston, Cornwall. He is also co-founder and director of an independent wealth management company amongst holding other varied business interests ranging from construction to event management.
He has a long-term relationship with the Charity and is a member of the West Country 100 Club, a group of businesspeople. He’s taken part in many fundraising activities, mentored individuals through the Royal Marines Charity Transition Programme (receiving an award from Lord Mountbatten for doing so), run courses at CTCRM and helped take a number of individuals from Hasler to Mt Toubkal in 2019.
Tom is a Fellow Member of Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (FCCA), an Associate Chartered Accountant (ACA) and a Member of the Institute of Directors (MIdD).
Outside of work he enjoys kayaking and spending as much time as possible in the outdoors.