Our People
Who you’ll be working with
With more than 200 years of combined experience in auditing, our team of passionate auditors understand the HE sector and will integrate seamlessly into your team as a supportive and trusted partner.
We are at our best when we walk in your shoes and operate on your campus as a visible and physical symbol of progress and change.
Meet our team of dedicated specialists…
Alan Lees
Alan held the position of Chief Executive for over 10 years until his retirement on 31 July 2025. Alan remains committed to the KCG cause and will therefore continue to support the KCG team as Consultant and Business Advisor in delivering services to our client institutions. His insight and ability to provide robust advice and challenge is highly valued and his continued involvement with KCG is very much welcomed.
Prior to joining KCG, Alan held partner roles at Grant Thornton and Robson Rhodes, where his clients included higher education and other not-for-profit organisations, and Central Government, industry regulators and accounting bodies. Alan’s career path led him to KCG with a remit to grow and expand the business and team.
In his spare time (though he is not always able to completely switch off!), Alan enjoys long walks with his Labrador Bella and is quite the chef, recreating elaborate dishes at weekends. His retirement provides other opportunities for personal growth and he intends to build expertise in photography and to do more travelling.
Jeannine Marlow
Jeannine is an Audit Director and Head of Internal Audit for two of our institutions. A Big Four trained Chartered Accountant, Jeannine has extensive and diverse experience across all areas of internal auditing, assessing the quality of risk management processes, systems of internal control and corporate governance, reporting directly and independently to the most senior level of executive management and to the board’s audit committee.
Jeannine worked for KCG from 2016 to 2018 and then re-joined in early 2022 after spending three years in the charity sector. A previous Head of Internal Audit for the UK’s largest private charitable hospital and project financier within the investment arm of a listed multi-utility company.
Jeannine is energized by meeting new people and motivated by a sense of pride and fulfilment through delivering work that makes a difference and enables institutions we work with to provide the best experience for learning and growth.
Family time is important to Jeannine and she enjoys supporting her daughters in their various sporting and musical pursuits and walking her dog, Dora. Jeannine is also a keen musician and plays the violin.
Melanie Cockton
Melanie is Chief Executive and Head of Internal Audit for five of our clients. Melanie specialises in risk management as a member of the Institute of Risk Management.
Melanie holds an MSc in Internal auditing and is a qualified internal auditor and member of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors. Melanie joined KCG in 2020 having worked in central government for the Ministry of Agriculture and then Defra as an in-house internal auditor. Melanie was part of the in-house internal audit team at Royal Holloway University of London, and then the University of Surrey for a combined period of 12 years. Following a year in the private sector at Capita, Melanie returned to the HE sector with KCG.
Melanie likes to be on top of her workload and be able to play an active role in managing priorities. The best part of the job for Melanie is meeting new people, and her personable approach to client relationships has led to a large portfolio of clients who trust Melanie to present innovative ideas to resolve challenges.
Melanie leads an active life and enjoys walking her dog, Milo, as well as regular exercise classes to ensure she is always switched on and ready for the next challenge.
David Jones
David is an Audit Associate Director and Head of KCG Operations. David leads on Corporate Governance and Data Analytics, an experienced auditor with 20 years of experience in both the public, private and not-for-profit sectors. David won a European scholarship and graduated with a MA in Banking and Finance in 2003 from the University of Wales, Bangor. David established an internal audit function within a mid-tier accountancy practice in East Anglia prior to joining KCG. David’s portfolio ranges from small specialist institutions to traditional multi-faculty universities, acting as Head of Internal Audit for a number of specialist arts institutions.
David has worked with several central government departments, membership organisations and a variety of charities advising on their corporate governance structures and risk and financial control frameworks. Through his experience outside of the higher education sector, David brings an alternative perspective from a variety of sectors and tailors any recommendations accordingly.
David is driven by understanding how things work by dissecting issues and challenges and putting them back together. The key to David’s approach is to provide independent assurance that an organisation's risk management, governance and internal control processes are operating effectively.
David integrates seamlessly into institutions teams with reassurance that we are a trusted partner working together to identify gaps and opportunities. David is motivated by the variety of work and people he works with as no 2 days are ever the same, and he is energised by continually learning and progressing his skill set. David is a people person, he brings charm, professionalism and humour to understand how you work at your best to develop an open and transparent working relationship.
David has many interests outside of work that include playing piano, violin and the church organ. In addition, David is teaching himself to play the guitar and saxophone. David enjoys cooking, particularly Chinese and Indian food, but is a self-confessed control freak in the kitchen! David also undertakes voluntary work teaching swimming to disabled children.
Phil Drysdale
Phil is our Audit Programme Manager who specialises in financial audit, data analytics and project management. Phil trained as an accountant with the Audit Commission and worked in external auditing before moving to internal auditing in 2007. Phil has primarily worked in the public sector – local and central government, Police and Fire services and the NHS.
Phil is motivated by quality service delivery to clients and a genuine interest in the areas being reviewed. Phil enjoys meeting new people and getting to know his clients. Always eager to expand his current skill set, Phil is navigating a new data analytics process to introduce to KCG’s portfolio.
Phil is at his best when interacting with new people and having new portfolio areas to review. Phil is progressive in outlook and enjoys new challenges. Phil’s day starts early with a dog walk before heading to the office for work sprints that involve head-down focus to get as much done as possible and repeated every hour.
Phil is proud of the professional approach deployed by KCG. The team has a wealth of experience and are constantly sharing learnings and best practice to ensure KCG is at the cutting edge of internal auditing processes and practices.
Jayani Jayasinghe
Jayani is an Internal Audit Consultant focusing on financial systems, student systems, data quality, risk management, value for money audits and grant certifications. With a background in management consultancy, Jayani is adept at managing multiple accounts simultaneously having developed a varied client portfolio.
Jayani is motivated to make the best use of the time to provide as much value as possible and is energised by auditees who value the quality of service delivered. Listening is the key to success for Jayani, as it helps to understand and ask the right questions whilst also builds trust and respect with our auditees.
In her spare time, Jayani values time with family spent on long walks, reading and Zumba classes.
Mark Swinerd
Mark is an Audit Manager with broad experience of working with HE institutions. Mark qualified as a chartered accountant, and became an Audit Manager, with KPMG, providing external audits and other services to clients ranging from small companies to publicly quoted groups. Mark then had a number of years with the Audit Commission, primarily focusing on auditing the financial statements of local councils, as well as assessing their use of resources and certifying grant claims. By joining KCG in 2010 Mark moved over to internal auditing and has thrived in its greater scope to add value to clients through the provision of assurance and identification of areas for improvement.
Using his extensive experience both inside and outside higher education, Mark has a focused approach to understanding how clients operate and provides an independent assessment of controls, governance and value for money. Mark enjoys meeting new people throughout an organisation and building collaborative and effective working relationships. Audit work is undertaken in a manner that whilst minimising disruption, also ensures potential findings are shared and discussed on a ‘no surprises’ basis. Most importantly, Mark is motivated by the desire to see clients succeed and achieve sustainable futures.
Mark is proud to work with his colleagues and jointly support continuous improvement within both KCG and its clients.
Irene Mortimer
Irene is an Audit Manager with over 25 years’ experience across the education, not for profit, public and private sectors. After qualifying as a Big Four trained Chartered Accountant, Irene worked for several years for the Audit Commission, including an overseas secondment to Audit New Zealand. In recent years, Irene worked as an Audit Manager for a national accountancy firm specialising in the charity and not-for-profit sector.
Irene joined KCG Audit in 2023 having gained internal audit experience in the NHS and primary, further and higher education sectors. Irene enjoys the rigour of internal audit in ensuring that there are appropriate systems of internal control in place. Irene has an emphatic approach and likes to work with and listen to her clients to agree practical and appropriate solutions.
Irene’s dedication to the education sector extends beyond KCG Audit. As a Corporation Board and Audit Committee member for a Staffordshire further education college, Irene is motivated to promote and improve understanding of audit, governance, and risk. As an Executive Member of the Council of Higher Education Internal Auditors (CHEIA), Irene works to promote internal audit in the sector.
Outside of work, Irene loves to take part in various water sports including open water swimming, kayaking, and paddleboarding.
Sally Yeadon
Sally is an Internal Audit Manager, joining KCG in 2024. Previously, she worked in practice exclusively on not-for-profit clients and has almost a decade’s experience in delivery of complex audits and advisory work across not-for-profit organisations, including cultural, academic, heritage and local government organisations.
Sally genuinely enjoys internal audit, in particular, meeting with many different people and covering a wide range of subjects and business areas. Every day is different, and she relishes gaining rapport with clients and auditees, making an audit a positive experience and, of course, driving positive changes within organisations.
Passionate about delivering excellent customer service and developing client relationships, Sally aims to produce clear reports which make proportionate and pragmatic recommendations to help clients to improve their operations.
Sally is a Member of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors (CIIA) and is a Certified Internal Auditor (CIA).
Outside of work, Sally loves reading, socialising, spending time with her family, and looking after her cat, Oscar, and dog, Nelly.
Discuss Your Needs With
Our Experienced Team
- Curious to find out how KCG could help your institution
achieve its goals? - Are you in need of independent, objective assessments of
your operations?
Get in touch with our team to find out how KCG could help your institution.
Email | enquiries@kcgaudit.co.uk
Call | +44 (0) 33013 38065
KCG Audit Limited, 7 Bell Yard Street, London WC2A 2JR
Company Number 09075270 England