Meet the Team
Our friendly, Christian team members are experts in their fields and are here to serve you.
Leadership Team & Board Members
Paul Houghton
Chief Executive Officer
Paul joined the team in 2020 and leads the Bank’s strategic thinking and planning as it seeks to serve UK churches.
He has 20 years of leadership and management experience in financial and professional services, and inspires the team with his energy and passion.
Outside work, Paul sits on the Council of Oak Hill Theological College, chairs the Board of Governors at Birkdale School in Sheffield, and is an active member of his local Anglican evangelical church in Sheffield. He enjoys walking in the Peak District, cooking, and messing about in boats.
Matt Slack
Chief Financial Officer
Matt qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 2002 and held various accounting and auditing roles within the accountancy profession before working in several large commercial organisations.
Matt joined Kingdom Bank in 2009 and, as a member of the Bank’s Leadership Team, oversees the Finance and HR functions.
He currently worships at a large church in
Nottingham and has served in previous churches in a number of roles
including Treasurer and Independent Examiner.
Matt is married with two sons and lives locally to the Bank’s head office.
Philip Taylor
Chief Information Officer
Philip began his career in IT 20 years ago before progressing as a Chartered Accountant, holding Head of Finance roles in both charity and financial service settings. Following this, he returned to IT as a certified Cyber and Information Security professional.
As Kingdom Bank’s Chief Information Officer, Philip helps to set and lead the technology strategy for the bank, driving efficiencies and digital change.
Philip serves in his local church as the leader of the worship team and lead worshipper. In his spare time, he like to play guitar and piano, as well as drawing and sketching.
David Kindred
Chief Risk Officer
David joined Kingdom Bank in March 2021 as Chief Risk Officer. Over the last 28 years, David has developed a wealth of experience across risk management, compliance, anti-money laundering and systems, having worked at banks covering retail, SME, charity and private customers, as well as with a consultancy and a credit reference agency.
David is married with four daughters and is actively involved in his local independent Evangelical church. He also volunteers with United Beach Missions and is Vice-Chair of Trustees at The Lodge Trust.
Pod Bhogal
Chief Market Officer
Pod joined Kingdom Bank in March 2024 to oversee marketing and growth initiatives across the bank’s deposits, lending, property, and insurance services.
With experience across the charity, public, and commercial sectors, Pod brings a wealth of marketing knowledge to his role. He is passionate about helping churches and Christian charities thrive.
Pod is a committed member of his local church and serves as board member for Speak Life.
Andrew Neden
CHAIR
Andrew joined Kingdom Bank in December 2023 to become Chair of the Board. As a Chartered Accountant with years of experience and knowledge of the financial sector, he plays a key part in the governance of the Bank. Having worked in a variety of different roles in KPMG, he most recently worked as Global Chief Operating Officer for KPMG Financial Services.
Over the last ten years he’s served in various Non-Executive Director roles, including being chair of the Nottingham Building Society, and has Chaired the audit committee for four different organisations.
He lives in London and worships at a local evangelical Anglican church, where he also serves as a trustee.
Richard Ellison
Non-Executive Director
Richard joined the Board as a Non-Executive Director in January 2021. He is currently the CFO of The Cumberland Building Society and has previously been the Deputy CFO and Chief Data Officer of Clydesdale Bank. Prior to joining Clydesdale in 2011, Richard spent 14 years at PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) as an auditor of banks in the UK and abroad. He has well over 20 years of experience in financial reporting and assurance. He is passionate about the positive role financial services can play in supporting business and retail customers and driving change to deliver this.
Outside work, Richard is a keen sportsman who has failed to give up rugby (yet!) and loves walking his Glen of Imaal Terrier up Fells. He is an active member of his local Anglican evangelical church in Cockermouth.
Helen Lamb
Non-Executive Director
Helen’s career has been in Human Resources, the first 10 years in financial services working for ABN Amro and RBS, and since 2010 working on a freelance basis to support SMEs. She holds Chartered membership of the CIPD and has a particular interest in helping organisations consider their people challenges strategically.
She is an active member of a large, Evangelical church in central Oxford with her husband and two children and also serves on the working group of the Church of England Evangelical Council, the Council of Oak Hill Theological College and as a trustee of Living Out and the Matthew Ministry.
When she’s not in meetings, she enjoys time with her teenage children, the family dog and sharing food with friends.
Greg Brisk
Non-Executive Director
Greg was appointed as a Non-Executive Director of Kingdom bank in March 2022. He has a passion for supporting Christian ministry through the provision of property for worship and accommodation and is trustee of a number of Christian charities. He is also Head of Governance at BNY Mellon Investment Management.
Greg is married with 3 children and grandchildren. He lives in central Oxford and worships at a large, evangelical church.
Account Management Team
Garry Chulan
Head of Account Management
Garry is responsible for leading the account management department to ensure our savings and mortgage customers receive a consistently high quality of service.
Garry has been managing teams across the banking sector for the last 20 years, using his love for people to help him inspire his teams to deliver a great service proposition daily.
Garry is part of a city centre church in Nottingham, where he is an active member of the ‘Freedom in Christ’ team.
Tricia Hole
Deputy Head of Account Management
Tricia has worked in banking for the last 30 years and brings a wealth of experience to her role at Kingdom Bank.
As Deputy Head of Account Management, Tricia is responsible, along with Garry, for leading the account management department on a day-to-day basis to deliver excellent customer service to our savings and mortgage customers.
Tricia is a member of a vibrant Anglican church in Loughborough, where she and her husband are both involved.
Emma Seagrave
CUSTOMER SERVICE ADMINISTRATOR
Emma worked in a variety of customer service and administration roles before joining the Kingdom Bank team, including work in recruitment and IT. She has a passion for helping people, and after becoming a Christian a few years ago, finds it a huge blessing to be able to serve God’s Kingdom through her work.
In her spare time, she enjoys reading the Word, listening to online preaching, and spending time with family and friends. She attends a church in Nottingham with her parents and husband.
Callum Williams
Customer Service Officer
Callum joined Kingdom Bank in October 2022 and provides support within our Account Management team. Prior to joining Kingdom Bank, he spent time working for the Church of England in a few different contexts and roles.
Having become a Christian at an independent charismatic church as a teenager, he now finds himself at home in the Church of England, enjoying the traditional style of services.
When not at work, Callum enjoys playing video games, spending time reading, and gradually exploring the Nottingham area with his wife.
Esther Martin
Customer & Investor Relationship Officer
Esther joined the Kingdom Bank team in October 2022 and provides administration support for the Bank’s investors. She is also responsible for building and maintaining investor relationships and supports the Account Management team in their daily activities.
She has a background in Customer Service and PR in the financial services sector.
Outside of work, Esther enjoys walking and cycling with her family in the Peak District. She is involved in running a toddler group and supports her husband who is the pastor of their church in Derby.
Jonathan Elkins
Customer Service Administrator
After moving to Nottingham to study, Jonathan joined the Kingdom Bank team in November 2022 as a Customer Service Administrator in the Account Management team.
He attends a large, evangelical church in Nottingham, and is involved in the tech and PA team.
In his spare time, he enjoys running, playing music, and exploring the countryside around Beeston.
Toby King
CUSTOMER SERVICE ADMINISTRATOR
Toby has worked in various customer-facing roles before joining Kingdom Bank in October 2023.
As a Youth Leader and Worship Leader Toby is actively involved at his evangelical church in Southwell, Nottingham.
When not at work he enjoys sports, mainly football, as he’s a Nottingham Forest fan.
Fiona Taylor
CUSTOMER SERVICE ADMINISTRATOR
Fiona joined Kingdom Bank in November 2021 and provides daily support within the Account Management department. Her career started in Health and Fitness and moved into Administration in May 2013. Over the years she has worked in different environments as an office administrator.
When not working, she enjoys spending time with family and working as part of the technical team at her church in Carlton, Nottingham, which she attends with her husband and two children.
Mortgage Team
Andrew Atkinson
Head of Lending
Andrew started in financial services in 1994 and has worked as a manager for two High Street banks for over 20 years.
As Head of Lending, Andrew is responsible for new lending to assist Kingdom Bank in fulfilling its vision of helping churches grow. He enjoys building relationships with customers in order to help them achieve their goals.
Andrew is Assistant Musical Director of a local choir, an active member of two choirs and is a regular worshipper at an Anglican church in Nottingham.
Kirsty Gledhill
Church & Charity Lending Manager
Kirsty has worked in the banking industry since 2001, initially as a Customer Advisor at a building society. She then worked for an online bank before stepping into her first role at Kingdom Bank as a Mortgages Assistant in 2009.
In her current role as the Church & Charity Lending Manager she looks after new borrowers from the initial contact right through to the completion of the mortgage. She loves working with churches and charities to see how Kingdom Bank enables them to be the hands and feet of Jesus in their communities.
Kirsty is a member of a Baptist church in Nottingham and serves on both the worship and tech teams. She enjoys photography and crafting in her spare time.
Jackie Fuller
Personal Mortgage Advisor
Jackie has over 20 years’ experience in the financial services sector and supports customers seeking a personal mortgage. Her role is to ensure that you, the customer, get the mortgage that is right for you. She will give you full advice and help you through every step of your mortgage journey.
Jackie is a member of her local church and regularly helps on the children and youth teams to help share the love of Jesus with the next generation. She has a busy family life, but in her spare time she enjoys playing badminton for her local club.
Janet Auta
PERSONAL MORTGAGE ADVISOR
Janet has worked within the financial services industry since 2009, and currently serves as a Personal Mortgage Advisor with a greater focus on Student Loans.
Janet is passionate about serving God through playing a part in enabling God’s servants to access required loans to help grow their ministry.
Janet attends a church in the heart of Preston City with her husband and 3 sons.
Louise Wright
Lending officer
Louise joined Kingdom Bank in January 2020, providing support with savings and mortgage customers in the Account Management team.
Louise has now joined the Mortgage team as a Lending Officer, so she will be supporting the team in responding to new enquiries and processing all applications through to the point of completion.
Louise is a member of a Baptist Church in Oakham, where she attends with her son. Her son keeps her very busy, but in her spare time she likes to cook and bake for others.
Michael Johnson
Lending Administrator
Michael journeyed down many pathways in life before joining the Kingdom Bank team, from working with children in a Chinese church to teaching English, from Charity administration to missions work in Nottingham.
Since joining the Bank in early 2024, Michael plays a key part in progressing mortgage applications and reviewing existing mortgages.
A longtime member of a local Evangelical church, Michael enjoys sharing Jesus with international students, bouldering, fantasy books, and cheesy ‘dad jokes.’
Insurance Team
Barry Walker
head of insurance
Barry has been in the insurance industry for over 40 years and enjoys combining his professional experience in helping our customers whilst serving.
Outside of work he enjoys spending time with his family and walking.
Alison Maiden
Insurance Account Executive
Working at Kingdom Bank allows Alison to express her faith authentically and to do things in the right way. She feels at home in the community of the Bank and those whom we serve.
Denise Coffee
Insurance Account Executive
Denise has worked at Kingdom Bank since 2008 and has over 25 years’ experience in the insurance industry.
Robert Burton
Insurance Account Executive
Robert joined Kingdom Bank in 2021 and has over 25 years’ experience within the insurance industry, including several years experience recent helping charities with their insurance requirements.
Robert’s passion away from the office is working with the children at his local church.
Helen Blackham
Insurance Account Executive
Helen has been working in the banking industry since 2000, mainly in Fraud, Anti-Money Laundering and Police Liaison while also studying a Criminology degree.
She then took a year out to serve God on the Discipleship Year at a church in Nottingham in 2012/2013.
Following this year she came to work at Kingdom Bank in insurance and continued to study gaining a Certificate in Insurance.
Laryssa Broadhead
Insurance Account Executive
Laryssa has been working in the Insurance team at Kingdom Bank since 2016.
Outside of work, Laryssa volunteers for her church and enjoys hiking.
Miranda Mote
Insurance Account Executive
Miranda joined Kingdom Bank in 2023 following a role working in the faith and charities insurance sector.
Outside of work, she enjoys serving in the music team at her local church, and keeping active by exploring the Lake District on her weekends.
Property Team
Jon Broome
Property Adviser
Jon joined us in 2024 to support us in setting up our Property services.
Marketing & Business Development
Hannah Oliver
Marketing & Business Development Manager
Hannah is responsible for sharing Kingdom Bank’s vision and product offering with the UK Church, as well as building fruitful partnerships with Christian organisations and individuals.
Hannah has previously worked in Marketing and Project Management roles and enjoys combining her experience in these areas to develop the work of the Bank.
She and her family are part of a New Frontiers church in London. When not working, Hannah can be found chasing around after her toddler, squeezing in a bit of exercise or enjoying a coffee and a cake – balance!
Ruth Upton
Marketing Executive
Ruth joined Kingdom Bank as a Marketing Executive in November 2021, and has a background in communications, design, and marketing.
She supports the Kingdom Bank team by providing resources and content which share the vision and values of the Bank with others, as well as planning the Bank’s collaborations and conference attendance.
In her spare time Ruth enjoys reading books, drinking coffee, and playing boardgames with family and friends. She attends a large, evangelical church in Nottingham, where she serves on the student team with her husband.
Ross Ellis-Butcher
Marketing Executive
Ross joined Kingdom Bank in September 2024 as part of our marketing team having previous experience in with high street & start up banks. He attends an evangelical church and likes peanut butter, a good cup of coffee and exploring the lake district with his wife.
