Money Advice Liaison Group (MALG), the not-for-profit membership organisation with the aim of ‘working together to improve the lives of people in debt’, celebrated its 35th anniversary at a National Members Meeting in London on 14 July 2022 with the launch of a new Ambassador programme.
MALG CEO Bob Winnington took attendees through MALG’s history and key achievements including the publication of the first ever industry guidelines on debt and mental health in 2007, and the switch to virtual collaboration overnight when the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020. He then announced the names of 35 MALG Ambassadors who have gone above and beyond to promote the support the organisation over the years, helping it go from strength-to-strength in recent times when its existence has been more relevant and important than ever.
Included in the list of 35 Ambassadors was Helen Gill, Founding Director of award-winning marketing comms consultancy Engage Comms Ltd, who has been working with MALG since 2017.
Bob Winnington, MALG CEO, said:
“It has been an honour and privilege to lead MALG as its CEO since I joined in 2016, but we could not have progressed to where we are today without support. We are a deliberately lean organisation which relies on those who we work with to go the extra mile to help us achieve our goals. There are too many people to mention who have done this but the 35 people I have identified as Ambassadors deserve special recognition for what they have done and continue to do. I am confident that MALG is ‘fit for the future’ and have no doubt that the next 35 years will be just as successful as the last.”
Helen Gill, Founding Director of Engage Comms, added:
“I’m proud to be named as a MALG Ambassador alongside some big names from across the credit and debt landscape and am committed to championing the organisation, especially during such turbulent economic times. MALG is more than just a client to Engage Comms; we see ourselves as a key part of the team and feel passionately about the organisation’s purpose and values. Communicating this to key stakeholders and seeing the outcomes of our work in action is incredibly rewarding. In its unique position at the centre of the money advice and financial services sector, the experience and insight we’ve gained from working with MALG has been instrumental in us securing other clients in what is now one of our key specialist sectors.”
The full list of MALG Ambassadors is as follows:
- Paul Smee, current MALG Chair and Chair of the Peer-to-Peer Finance Association
- Craig Simmons, Head of Debt Advice Policy & Strategy, Money & Pensions Service and MALG Board member
- Fiona Hoyle, Director of Consumer & Mortgage Finance and Inclusion, Finance & Leasing Association and MALG Board member
- Liz Barclay, former MALG Chair now UK Small Business Commissioner
- Lee Healey, Founder, IncomeMax and former MALG Board member
- Jacqui Tribe, former MALG Board member
- Bee Thakur, UK Public Policy Lead, Truelayer and ex MALG Executive Council member
- Robert Wilson, CEO of Institute of Money Advisers and former MALG Board member
- Jenny Ogden, ex MALG Board member and former Partner, Shoosmiths LLP
- Robert Skinner, MALG Vice Chair
- Ian Fiddeman, UK Finance and Chair of MALG Finance Committee
- Lisa Black, Director of Operations, Nottingham Revenues and Benefits Ltd, and MALG Board member
- Heidi Oliver, owner of Absolutely Admin and MALG Operations Manager
- Carole Kenney, President Civil Enforcement Association & Director, Welfare & Customer Care at CDER Group and MALG Membership Working Group Member
- Dan Alchin, Deputy Director – Retail, Energy UK and ex MALG Executive Council member
- Samantha Nurse, Founder and CEO, Money Advice Hub and former MALG Board Member
- Meg van Rooyen, Policy Lead, Money Advice Trust and ex MALG Executive Council member
- Vanora McCullagh, Debt Management Relationship Manager, Lowell and MALG Regional Committee Member
- Peter Wallwork, former CEO of Credit Services Association, Non-Exec Director of Trustfolio and Avarto, and MALG Board member
- John Fairhurst, Managing Director, Payplan and MALG Board member
- Will Atkinson, Senior Policy Manager, Finance & Leasing Association and MALG Membership Working Group Member
- Helen Gill, Founding Director, Engage Comms Ltd and MALG Marketing Communications consultant
- Sara Williams, former Citizens Advice debt adviser and Debt Camel blogger/campaigner and ex MALG Committee Member
- Gareth McNab, Director of External Affairs, Christians Against Poverty and ex MALG Committee Member
- Paul Bowden, Partner, Wilkin Chapman and MALG Regional Committee Member
- Amanda McCann, Operations Manager – Customer Outcomes, Link Financial Outsouring and MALG Membership Working Group Member
- Russell Hamblin-Boone, CEO, Civil Enforcement Association (CIVEA) and MALG Membership Working Group Member
- Yvonne Macdermid, former CEO, Money Advice Scotland and ex MALG Board member
- James Jones, Head of Consumer Affairs, Experian and MALG Board member
- Bob Kingdon, former Director of Compliance, Intrum and ex MALG Executive Council member
- Leigh Berkley, Chairman of Collection House Group Australia and former MALG Board member
- David Hawkes, Policy & Campaigns Co-ordinator, AdviceUK and ex MALG Executive Council member
- Lee Usher, Creditor Services Director, Trustfolio Ltd and MALG Regional Committee Member
- Sebrina McCullough, Head of External Relations, Financial Wellness Group
- Vikki Wilkins, UK Head of Customer Services, PRA Group and MALG Membership Working Group Member
