PEOPLE

Our staff are a small but talented group of individuals who are passionate about creating a better world for whistleblowers and the wider public. 

Senior team  

Liz Gardiner, CEO:

Elizabeth was appointed as Protect’s Chief Executive in March 2020. She took over as acting chief executive jut before the first UK lockdown and successfully steered the charity through the troubling years of Covid. A fully qualified solicitor, she also has extensive experience in Parliament and policy work. Elizabeth is also a member of the Whistleblowing International Network board of trustees.

Sybille Raphael, Legal Director:

Sybille is Protect’s legal director. She is a leading specialist whistleblowing lawyer working alongside employers, regulators and whistleblowers. She has in-depth knowledge of the law and the practical realities of whistleblowing and has a key role in Protect’s current legal reform campaign, pushing for innovative and much needed improvement to the UK whistleblowing legal framework. She also has wide-ranging expertise in helping organisations improve their whistleblowing arrangements and ‘speak up’ culture.

Andrew Pepper Parsons, Director of Policy: 

Andy has unparalleled experience of the challenges faced by whistleblowers and the intricacies of the law, having been with Protect since 2007. A policy specialist, he oversees Protect’s lobbying, research and campaign. He spearheaded numerous reports on various aspects of whistleblowing and is a much respected speaker on the subject.

Jon Cunningham, Business Development Director:

Senior executive experienced in driving change and improving performance. Responsible for Protect’s clients, products, services and revenue Jon directs the Business Support team to bring in vital funding and improve the whistleblowing arrangements for other organisations via carefully constructed services.

Legal Advice team 

Our Legal Advisers are all qualified law graduates who are experts in whistleblowing law. They are passionate about the importance of speaking up – and of supporting those who speak up.  They advise on employment rights and how to safely raise concerns and each year they support thousands of whistleblowers on our advice line.  

Business Support team:
Our business support team provide bespoke advice to hundreds of organisations on how to set up effective whistleblowing processes.   We take the experience from our advice line into our training and use our almost 30 years of expertise working with organisations to help develop best practice whistleblowing arrangements.  

Policy team: 

Our policy team identifies legal and policy issues affecting whistleblowing and campaigns for improvements in the law.  They produce original research from analysis of calls to the advice line and by working with leading employers.  

 

“I joined Protect because of the importance of whistleblowing in ensuring a healthy and safe working environment. Whistleblowing can affect any one of us, in any workplace, and has a vital impact on the wellbeing of society as a whole. That is why it is so rewarding to advise the brave callers who are speaking up about wrongdoing in their workplace. I love the variety that every call brings; we work with a vast range of industries and advise on a number of concerns, so no two days are the same.”