Board of Trustees

 Dr Fiona Rayment OBE FNucI

Current President

Fiona is currently NNL's Special Advisor to the CEO. She has more than 25 years of nuclear industry experience working primarily within operations and strategic planning roles across several different nuclear sites, both in the UK and internationally.

Fiona is a Chartered Chemist and engineer with a PhD in chemistry from the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow and is a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering as well as the Royal Society of Chemistry. She has been a Fellow of the Nuclear Institute since 2014.

Also recently served as a member of Euratom’s Science and Technology Committee, the Idaho National Laboratory's Nuclear Science and Technology Advisory Committee, and the American Nuclear Society Board and is the immediate past chair of the UK’s Nuclear Skills Strategy Group. Her other roles across the sector include being an NI Trustee, a member of the Nuclear Industry Council and a member of the Office of Nuclear Regulation Chief Nuclear Inspector’s Independent Advisory Panel.

Email: president@nuclearinst.com

Jasbir Sidhu

Immediate Past President

Jasbir is one of the UK's leading Operational Risk Analysts, with over 30 years of experience developing quantified holistic risk/safety models taking the role of the human being into consideration.  He cut his teeth developing models for the UK civil nuclear power generation industry. 

Jasbir has a BEng (Hons) in Nuclear Engineering from the University of Manchester and an MBA from the University of Surrey where his final year dissertation covered valuing different base-load power generators, Coal, Gas and Nuclear taking financial (real) options theory into consideration.

He started his career as a Safety Engineer at Electrowatt International (3 years) and followed this with seven years at WS Atkins where his final role was Principal Risk Consultant.  In 2000 he set-up CRA which was the second company and first SME to join the NI’s Company Membership Scheme.  CRA have worked hard to encourage and develop the next generation of nuclear scientists and engineers through interactions with schools and universities.

Nicola O'Keefe

Honorary Treasurer 

Nicola is a Chartered Accountant with extensive knowledge and experience of leading and transforming finance teams.

An experienced auditor with foreign language skills, she began her career with Ernst & Young before working at Pilkington Plc and Independent Insurance in internal audit roles. 

She worked for Wood and Jacobs for over 17 years and during that time has led teams in both the business and in plc, driving change in the shared service centre, implementing systems and integrating teams following involvement in various acquisitions. She then worked as Finance Director at Bilfinger before her current role with Volkerstevin.

Mark Salisbury FNucI

Chair, Policy Committee 

Mark works for Rolls-Royce SMR and was previously an advisor to the Government with the Nuclear Innovation and Research Office. He graduated with a degree in chemistry from the University of Warwick in 2002 and is a Fellow of the World Nuclear University, Royal Society of Chemistry and Institute of Innovation and Knowledge Exchange. He is a Chartered Chemist and Scientist and sits on the Board of Trustees of the Nuclear Institute, of which he is also a Fellow.

Prior to his current role, Mark worked for Horizon Nuclear Power in numerous positions, latterly as the Operations Development Manager; responsible for developing plans for the operational utility intending to operate Horizon’s plants. This included Horizon’s Technical Apprentice Programme and Training Support Partner. Whilst at Horizon he was one of 7 people to successfully complete the initial operator training on the Japanese Advanced Boiling Water Reactor in Japan through consecutive translation! Prior to this, Mark has worked for British Energy at Sizewell B and for Powergen on nuclear, coal and gas-fuelled power stations in Chemistry and Operations.

Richard Deakin FNucl

The son of a Coal Miner, Richard first entered the nuclear sector as a graduate trainee over 35 years ago in a technically focused role at what was then BNFL Springfields, with a degree in Metallurgy and Materials. He quickly moved towards operations and project management where he has spent most of his career trying to deliver progress. Richard has enjoyed leadership roles across a wide range of the UK nuclear landscape working at several sites in support of Civil and Defence programs and also in the USA. In his current role, he leads the Innovate UK team working with Rolls-Royce SMR. He previously worked directly in UK Government as a Policy Official in Nuclear.

Richard regularly supports the Institute and wider sector as a delegate, speaker and advocate at events and seeks to influence and educate in the widest sense. In recent years he has served as a member of the Nuclear Institute Midlands Branch committee and on the Institute Policy Committee. 

Jennifer Nugent

Jennifer Nugent is currently the Head of Technical Solutions at Nuclear Transport Solutions (NTS) (part of the NDA group) where she is a recognised leader.  NTS is the leading global provider of safe, secure, and reliable nuclear transport and logistics solutions that help make the world safer and more sustainable.

Jennifer started her nuclear career at BNFL Springfields in the research laboratories, moving into the Environmental department and then to her preferred area of Nuclear Transport. Having led teams working on Package Design, Safety Case development and Licensing through to consignment and delivery she is keen to ensure that the skills relating to the transport of nuclear material are maintained as without transport there is no nuclear industry. 

Sasha Wynn Davies

Sasha is an experienced and effective economic and community regeneration professional having worked in both the private and public sectors at a senior level across Wales, the UK and overseas. She has a particular passion for Wales’ potential in maximising and developing its economy, realising its energy and natural resources potential to the benefit of Wales (and its visitors) and the wider UK. This includes developing low-carbon energy, especially nuclear, and tourism sectors, and improving communications and engagement with the business and community sectors.

Sasha's wealth of experience includes holding the roles of Head of Commercial at Natural Resources Wales (NRW) and Head of Strategic Development Wales at Horizon Nuclear Power.

Saralyn Thomas MNucI

 Saralyn is a senior nuclear safety consultant working for Abbott Risk Consulting Ltd. She have worked for various clients across the sector in new build, waste management and decommissioning projects, writing various safety case documentation. This can include facilitating workshops to identify hazards from facilities and processes, assessing the doses and risks from such operations and justifying that these risks are As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP).

Saralyn is a former Chair of the NI Young Generation Network (2022), and served on the YGN Strategic Committee 2019 – 2023. Her other YGN roles include:

• YGN Vice-Chair and International Liaison, 2021
• YGN Marketing and Comms Lead, 2020
• YGN Secretary, 2019
• YGN representative for the NI Central England Branch, 2016 – 2018

Linda Aylmore

Linda is an experienced finance professional, has a fellowship status with the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA) and more than 25 years’ experience at senior board and executive roles within the Nuclear, Defence and Transport sectors. 

She began her early career working in various finance roles for commercial transport companies, including Volvo GB and Leyland DAF before joining the corporate finance team at British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) HQ, in 1999. Linda led many projects through BNFL’s privatisation and following its liquidation remained in the nuclear sector, taking on a number of senior finance board appointments in multi-national organisations including Westinghouse, Toshiba, and Amentum.  

Linda is a commercially astute finance director with a solid understanding of the domestic and international nuclear sector. She has a strong track record of leading change, inspiring teams, and working effectively with internal and external stakeholders. She is passionate about developing the next generation and as a former executive of Women in Nuclear, continues as an ambassador to influence diversity and inclusion across the sector.

Linda joined Nuclear Transport Solutions as CFO in May 2023.

Hannah Paterson

Hannah Paterson is a programme manager for irradiated fuels at Sellafield Ltd developing new capabilities for long term spent fuel storage.

A Chartered Chemist by training, Hannah has a Master of Chemistry degree from the University of Edinburgh. She has over 10 years’ experience in radioactive waste management and fuel management systems having held leadership roles in strategy and technical programme development and implementation at both the NDA and Sellafield Ltd. Recent roles include serving as Board of Director for the European Nuclear Society.

An active advocate for the Nuclear Institute since starting in the industry Hannah served on the Strategic Committee for the YGN 2018-2022 and was chair of the YGN in 2021 having initiated the #NetZeroNeedsNuclear campaign at COP26.

Kirsty Armer FNucI

Kirsty Armer FNucI Kirsty is an experienced board director with 14 years on the board of SFL and has also held positions on the boards of Westinghouse UK Limited and Cumbria Nuclear Solutions Limited, NIRAB and the NAMRC programme board.

Kirsty has held a wide portfolio of senior executive roles leading technical and operational business segments in the nuclear industry, most recently as Vice President of Westinghouse UK Environmental Services.