Natalie Ceeney

Natalie Anna Ceeney CBE (born 22 August 1971) is a British civil servant and businessperson who has filled several senior roles in both the public and private sectors in the United Kingdom. She was Chief Executive of The National Archives from 2005 to 2010; Chief Executive and Chief Ombudsman of the Financial Ombudsman Service from 2010 to 2013; head of customer standards at HSBC bank from February to December 2014; and Chief Executive of Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service from 2015 to 2016.

Early life

Natalie Ceeney was born in Epping Forest, Essex. She attended the independent Forest School in Walthamstow.^[1][2] She took her A-levels when she was 16,^[3] then went to the University of Cambridge in 1988, one year early. She attended Newnham College, Cambridge, initially studying Mathematics, where she gained a first class degree. From 1990 to 1991 she was the President of Cambridge University Students' Union.

Career

She began her career at the National Health Service in 1991, becoming a manager from 1992 to 1994 at Northwick Park Hospital, later working from 1992 to 1994 at Hertfordshire Health Agency (in Welwyn Garden City), and from to 1996 to 1998 at Great Ormond Street Hospital. She led strategic consultancy projects across a range of industries at McKinsey & Company. She worked at the British Library from 2001 to 2005 as Chief Operating Officer.

The National Archives

From 2005 to 2010 she was Chief Executive (styled Keeper of Public Records and Historic Manuscripts Commissioner) at The National Archives. Her appointment was announced in August 2005, and she took up the post in October of the same year.^[2]

Financial Ombudsman Service

She became Chief Ombudsman of the Financial Ombudsman Service in March 2010.^[4] Her appointment was announced on 11 January 2010. She left the Financial Ombudsman Service in November 2013.^[5]

HSBC

In February 2014 she became head of customer standards at the bank HSBC, in a move described as likely to "raise eyebrows".^[6]

Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunal Service

On 4 November 2014 it was announced that Ceeney would become Chief Executive of Her Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) from 5 January 2015.^[7] As of 2015, Ceeney was paid a salary of between £180,000 and £184,999 by the department, making her one of the 328 most highly paid people in the British public sector at that time.^[8] On 5 May 2016 it was announced that she was leaving the role at HMCTS at the end of May 2016.^[9]

Personal life

She married Dr Simon Chaplin, a medical historian, in 2007. She was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the 2010 New Year Honours.

References

1. "Who's Who". Old Foresters. Forest School (Walthamstow). Retrieved 15 December 2015.
2. Fenton, Ben (13 August 2005). "Management consultant gets top post at Archives". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
3. "The Business On... Natalie Ceeney Chief executive, Financial Ombudsman". The Independent. 19 May 2011. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
4. "New chief financial ombudsman appointed". News and outreach. Financial Ombudsman Service. 23 July 2014. Retrieved 15 December 2015.
5. Holt, Natalie (15 November 2013). "FOS chief exec Natalie Ceeney steps down". Money Marketing. Retrieved 12 December 2013.
6. Steiner, Rupert (31 January 2014). "Consumer champion Natalie Ceeney swaps sides to work for HSBC bank". Daily Mail. Retrieved 15 February 2014.
7. "New HM Courts & Tribunals Service chief executive appointed". gov.uk. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 November 2014.
8. "Senior officials 'high earners' salaries as at 30 September 2015 - GOV.UK". www.gov.uk. 2015-12-17. Retrieved 2016-03-13.
9. "UK courts chief to leave job after just over a year". The Guardian. 5 May 2016. Retrieved 6 May 2016.