Julie Nicholson: Chair

Julie joined Teachers Building Society (TBS) in March 2018 and was appointed as Chair to the Board of Directors in April 2018. She was previously Chair of the Board of Directors at Reliance Bank Limited until December 2021 and currently acts as a Non Executive Director on the boards of a number of financial services companies.

Julie brings over 30 years’ experience of working within financial services having qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG and worked in their audit and risk advisory services practices prior to moving to Barclays Bank PLC where she held several Executive roles in the Finance and Governance areas.

Simon Beresford: Chief Executive Officer

Simon was appointed Chief Executive Officer and joined the Board in February 2017. He previously held a number of senior positions at Nationwide Building Society including Branch Network Director, Managing Director Personal Loans and Head of Mortgage Administration.

More recently, at BlackRock as Chief Administration Officer in the Retail business and prior to that, Chief Operating Officer for the UK Pensions business. He holds an MBA from Henley Business School, a Diploma in Management Studies from Oxford Brookes, as well as qualifications in mortgages and financial planning. He believes the Society is well placed to thrive and grow by helping more teachers to own their homes. As a focused mutual organisation, its strength lies in offering a distinctive mix of deep sector expertise and a track record of personal service, delivered by a team who are passionate about their customers.

Dr Jim McAtear: Non Executive Director

Dr Jim McAtear joins the Society from a background of 30 years’ experience in education.

 Jim serves as a National Leader in Education and is Chief Executive of a Multi-Academy Trust. He brings experience as a classroom teacher, Headteacher of several schools, a National Mental Health Lead in addition to experience as a Lead Schools Inspector. He also serves as a Non-Executive Director of ESB (International) and as a Chief Accounting Officer.

 Jim is passionate about the founding mission of the Society in supporting educational professionals to remain in the profession while fulfilling their personal aspirations in terms of savings and owning a home of their own.

Paul Winter: Non Executive Director

Paul joined Teachers following his retirement as CEO at Ipswich Building Society at the end of 2016. He led the Ipswich through the financial crisis during which time it grew strongly and significantly improved its profitability.

A firm believer in the unique role of mutuals, Paul developed a strategy to build a strong connection between the Society and its members and also an important place in its community. This led to a number of awards for himself and the Society culminating in the award of an MBE in 2015 for his work in helping to develop the skills and employability of young people in Suffolk.

Patrick Jarman: Legal Director

Patrick joined the Board in May 2015 and is an executive director. His areas of responsibility include risk management, compliance, legal matters and governance. Patrick joined Teachers in 2011, having spent most of his career in the aerospace industry where he held a number of senior commercial and legal positions. Prior to that, he worked in mergers and acquisitions, and commercial law in the City, having qualified as a solicitor.

Patrick is committed to maintaining the Society’s traditions of integrity and high ethical standards and believes that a mutually owned building society is uniquely placed to ensure the fair treatment of borrowers and savers alike.

Rajesh Patel: Finance Director

Rajesh joined Teachers in 2019 with a wealth of experience in the building society sector, having served as Finance Director of Buckinghamshire Building Society for nine years. Rajesh was also previously Country Financial Controller at Citibank based in the Channel Islands.

Rajesh is committed to building on the unique mutual model, providing long term value to our members through innovative products and services to the teaching profession and the wider membership and building on the strong positive culture at Teachers Building Society, as well as contributing to the local community.

Jane Dumeresque: Non Executive Director 

Jane joined the TBS team in October 2021. As former CEO of Folk2Folk, a peer2peer lender, she has a strong understanding of the different needs of savers and borrowers, and the important role technology plays in market leading customer service. 

Jane qualified as a Chartered Accountant with KPMG and brings over 25 years’ executive experience in financial services. She chairs and serves on the audit and risk committees of a number of boards. She champions local prosperity in the South West sitting as a non-executive director on the boards of Exeter Science Park, Heart of the South West LEP and South West Mutual. 

A former Vice Chair of a multi academy trust, Jane believes teachers are the backbone of society, shaping students’ values and aspirations and encouraging  equal opportunity for all. Jane is committed to ensuring TBS continues to support teacher mobility and maintains a strong social conscience.