About Us
The building society difference
The Cambridge is an independent, mutual society which has been integral to the community since 1850. We provide funding for people buying their own homes and are a trusted home for people in a position to save.
The Cambridge is built on the core values of:
Courage
We’re bold enough to do things differently and brave enough to break new ground. Together we’ll learn from every experience, embrace every opportunity, and we’ll face every challenge with confidence and pride
Integrity
With honest advice and sincere intentions, we promise fairness and balance in everything we do. We'll stay true to our word and loyal to our members, keeping their best interests at the heart of our approach
Community
We’ll stand proudly together as a member-owned mutual, supporting the community that builds our Society. With local hearts and life-changing ideas, we’ll make a difference today and for the generations that follow
Expertise
We’ll make our expertise count for every customer, with clear advice and a simple approach. The knowledge of our teams can mean everything to our members, so we’ll keep investing in our people to inspire their growth
Relevance
We’ll be here whenever we’re needed; listening, learning, adapting, and innovating. We’ll be healthily restless and always open to change, ready to evolve in tune with our members and the world around us
Making The Difference means finding new ways to help people have a home.
How? By thinking differently to help those who can't afford to buy, and by working differently with community partners to improve access to shelter and housing.
As a member-owned mutual, our community has always been close to our hearts. After all, without the people of Cambridge, our Society simply wouldn't exist.
That's why we're working hard to give back when we can... and Making The Difference is how we're doing it.
Making The DifferenceOur approach to Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging
We pride ourselves on being a fair and inclusive Building Society. And we know that our members admire and respect the moral fabric that’s always been found at the heart of The Cambridge.
Our approach to Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging means every team member feels respected and integral to our culture.
Who manages your building society
Peter Burrows
Chief Executive Officer, Executive Director
Richard Brockbank
Chief Financial Officer, Executive Director
Carole Charter
Chief Commercial Officer, Executive Director
Lucy Crumplin
Chief Operating Officer, Executive Director
Sandhya Kawar
Chief Risk Officer, Executive Director
John Spence
Chairman, Non-Executive Director
Stephen Jack
Vice Chairman, Non-Executive Director
Pauline Holroyd
Non-Executive Director
Fiona Hotston Moore
Non-Executive Director
Andrew Jones
Non-Executive Director
Andrew Morley
Non-Executive Director
Professor Andrew Rice
Non-Executive DirectorPeter Burrows
Chief Executive Officer, Executive Director
Peter was appointed Chief Executive Officer in October 2019 having joined the Society as Finance Director in 2016. His vision is for The Cambridge to be a thriving, independent, mutual business, dedicated to helping people have a home and being a trusted place for people to save.
He has over 20 years of financial services experience, having held senior roles in both mutual and plc businesses and worked in the UK as well as mainland Europe. As well as ensuring that The Cambridge remains a member-centric, financially secure business, Peter is committed to the further development of our ‘Making The Difference’ programme aimed at supporting our members and their local communities.
A mathematics graduate of Oxford University, Peter now embraces ‘all things Cambridge’ as a keen road cyclist and runner alongside the River Cam. A favourite area is around Magdalene Bridge, which for him is where history and modernity meet.
Peter sits on the Nominations committee and also attends the Audit, Risk and Remuneration & Organisational Design committees.
Richard Brockbank
Chief Financial Officer, Executive Director
Richard joined the Board at The Cambridge in 2020 as Chief Financial Officer and brings a wealth of experience to the role. After graduating from the University of Cambridge and qualifying as a Chartered Accountant, Richard spent 10 years working in early stage venture capital fund management. In 2015, Richard joined the Society as Head of Finance and BI where he has been integral to the delivery of The Cambridge’s strategy to deliver sustainable growth focussed on long term benefits to both savers and borrowers.
In Richard’s spare time he is a keen photographer. He also loves baking and is a keen (but slow!) cyclist.
Carole Charter
Chief Commercial Officer, Executive Director
Carole Charter joined the Society in 2003 and since then has held a variety of marketing and customer related roles within the business. She was appointed to Chief Commercial Officer and joined the Board in April 2020. Carole brings a wealth of knowledge and understanding of financial services and the building society sector to the role which encompasses responsibility for marketing, product development, lending and financial support & arrears. Carole has an Accountancy & Financial Management degree from the University of Sheffield. Carole attends the Risk committee and chairs the Operational & Conduct Risk Committee.
In Carole’s spare time she’s a big ‘foodie’ and enjoys cooking up curries and the occasional paella. She also enjoys an evening at the local theatre, the west end and the opera!
Lucy Crumplin
Chief Operating Officer, Executive Director
Lucy joined The Cambridge in November 2019 as temporary Head of People and within a few months became our Chief Operating Officer and member of our Board.
She is responsible for ensuring we have everything in place to make our business ambitions a reality and deliver excellent customer service: outstanding team members; safe and effective IT; and an attractive branch network, contact centre and digital banking channels. She’s also responsible for Operational Resilience and Facilities.
“I found a team I loved and a Society with a real energy, sense of purpose and ambition, and was delighted to take on the role of Chief Operating Officer,” said Lucy.
“Just one of the nice things about The Cambridge is the potential to develop your career in ways you might not have imagined on your first day here.”
Lucy studied English Literature and Psychology at Cardiff University and has an MSc in Human Resources. She went on to work as a management consultant focusing on organisational change and performance improvement for a wide range of businesses, held operational leadership roles and was a Non-Executive Director of an NHS Foundation Trust.
Outside of work Lucy can usually be found cheering on her son and daughter at various sports fixtures, walking the dog, or just relaxing in front of the TV with her husband and a glass of something cold.
Sandhya Kawar
Chief Risk Officer, Executive Director
Sandhya joined The Cambridge as Chief Risk Officer and executive director in January 2022.
Sandhya studied BSc and MSc Economics at the London School of Economics and Warwick Universities, and started her career as an economist at the Bank of England in 2004.
She has since worked as a risk consultant at Deloitte and within the Risk and Operations teams at M&G. Most recently, Sandhya was Head of Risk at Britain’s oldest private bank, C. Hoare & Co.
Outside of work, Sandhya loves spending time with her nieces and nephews, going to the gym, and discovering new places to eat with her husband.
John Spence
Chairman, Non-Executive Director
John joined The Cambridge in November 2020. John has had a distinguished career in financial services, principally with Lloyds TSB where he ended his executive career with a series of Managing Director roles across various parts of the business.
Born and raised in Edinburgh, John excelled as a scholar spanning across George Watson’s College, Trinity College, Dublin and Harvard Business School.
Today, John has a range of roles including non-executive directorships including being Chair of the property group Spicerhaart and previously being a member of the Board at Skipton Building Society. He is also deeply committed to charitable and public service through being a cabinet member of Essex County Council, Finance Chair for the Church of England Archbishop’s council, and has chaired various disability charities.
John is a proud family man and lives with his wife Yvonne in Essex. He has a passion for cooking, swimming, garden and motorcycling. John has successively been awarded the MBE, OBE and CBE and for services to community, to charity and to business respectively.
Stephen Jack
Vice Chairman, Non-Executive Director
Stephen joined the Society as a Non-executive Director in April 2014 and is a member of the Audit and Risk Committees.
A Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants, Stephen brings more than 30 years’ experience in financial services, including senior level positions within global investment banking and broking businesses.
A keen walker and runner, Stephen regularly takes part in his local parkrun (parkrun.org.uk). Whilst at university, Stephen was captain of his University Challenge team, who sadly lost in round one! Nonetheless, Stephen went on to hold board positions in public and not-for-profit sectors that have benefitted from his vast knowledge of financial and risk management, internal controls and governance.
In 2014 Stephen was honoured with an OBE, for his services to disabled people.
Pauline Holroyd
Non-Executive Director
Pauline started her career in manufacturing becoming HR Director for Kimberly Clark European divisions before moving into the service industry as Gatwick Airport HR Director. She later joined the financial service sector delivering the largest ever insurance change programme at Aviva.
After being Group HR Director at the Post Office, Pauline became HR Vice-President for the global loss-adjusting firm Crawford & Co. Here she also established an in-house organisational transformation consultancy division which she then grew further as an independent entity.
Her focus has been on creating the most enabling environment for people to thrive and deliver their best work. She believes that facilitating people to work together to improve performance across the organisational and industrial system of work is the best way to deliver superior results for its customers.
She is currently Group HR Director for Network Rail delivering a transformational change programme for ‘Putting Passengers First’.
Pauline is a member of the Audit and Remuneration & Organisational Design Committees.
Fiona Hotston Moore
Non-Executive Director
Fiona Hotston Moore joined The Cambridge in November 2018 and brings extensive financial expertise from a career in accountancy, which started in Cambridge at KPMG. Since then she has been a Partner in a number of Top 10 and international firms in London.
Today sees her as a forensic services partner in FRP, a national strategic business advisory firm. Fiona is based in Norwich, where she encourages the team to reach their own potential.
Fiona was attracted to The Cambridge because of our strong reputation, culture and focus on the local market.
Fiona is married to Graham and has two children (Oliver and Helena), with three dogs and they're all keen runners! They live in Framlingham, Suffolk.
You can find Fiona on social media and she is actively involved with the Samaritans as a listening volunteer and supporting the communities within the local prisons.
Andrew Jones
Non-Executive Director
Andrew has worked in the building society sector for 40 years; a career that supports his passionate belief in the mutual business model, best demonstrated through a local Building Society with strong ties to the local community.
His experience in senior roles brings a wealth of know-how to our Board as a Non-Executive Director. Most recently engaged as a Risk Director for a major regional society, Andrew is an accomplished Chair of The Cambridge’s Risk Committee.
Brought up in Europe, Andrew returns when he can, enjoying city breaks. A family man, with three dogs, three daughters and six grandsons; he sometimes finds time to read crime fiction.
A graduate in Mathematics from Bristol University, Andrew holds qualifications with the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators and the Chartered Institute of Bankers.
Andrew Morley
Non-Executive Director
Andrew has been a ‘champion of the customer’ and a ‘champion for digital’ throughout his career – which started at the Ford Motor Company. Since then he has held several senior leadership roles at Sky Television, Cable & Wireless, Harrods, Google, Motorola and as the CEO of the advertising business, Clear Channel. In 2016, Andrew joined the world’s largest international children’s charity, World Vision where he serves as their International President and Chief Executive Officer.
Andrew was previously the chair of the IT Committee and is now the chair of the Remuneration Committee and he serves as the Senior Independent Director of the Society.
Andrew is also an Ordained Minister in the Church of England. A keen cyclist, he spends his leisure time cycling up mountains, trying to catch up with his wife, Vanessa.
Professor Andrew Rice
Non-Executive Director
Professor Andrew Rice joined The Cambridge in February 2020 and has extensive experience in computer technologies including privacy and professional software development.
Andrew works in the Department for Computer Science and Technology at the University of Cambridge where his research in software engineering and related areas is internationally recognised. He also has a strong interest in teaching and co-founded the Isaac Computer Science and Isaac Physics projects which provide online learning resources for school children across the UK.
Andrew lives in Cambridge with his family, is a keen squash player and enjoys jogging around The Backs. Andrew also lists Olympic weightlifting among his hobbies although he admits a call up to Team GB is highly unlikely!