Our governance
The main decision-making, executive and managerial bodies at the Rural Payments Agency.
Agency Management Board
As an Executive Agency, the Public Bodies Handbook states that RPA is required to have a board made up of non-executive directors, a sub-set of RPA’s directors and a Defra representative. This group forms the Agency Management Board (AMB), who meet 6 times a year.
The purpose of the AMB is to:
- provide leadership
- advise on whether the strategic aims and objectives of the RPA are consistent with its overall strategic direction, and are within the policy and resources framework determined by the Secretary of State
- maintain high standards of corporate governance
- ensure that controls are in place to manage risk and scrutinise performance
AMB is supported by the Audit and Risk Assurance Committee (ARAC) that has responsibility for risk assessment, auditing and accounting.
Board members
- Adrian Belton (AMB chair)
- Oliver Munn, Chief Executive, RPA
- Alison White (RPA ARAC Chair)
- Paul Savage, RPA Non-Executive Director
- David Brooks, RPA Non-Executive Director
- Sarah Calcutt, RPA Non-Executive Director
- Stephen Briggs, RPA Non-Executive Director
- Dan Gilbert, RPA Finance Director
- Mark Ashenden, RPA Business Strategic Management Director
- Sophia Haughton, RPA HR Director
- Mike Rowe, Farming and Countryside Programme Director
RPA Executive Team
The RPA Executive Team (ET) is made up of the Chief Executive and a team of executive directors. The purpose of ET is to:
- have overall authority to run the Agency day-to-day, including budget delegations
- set the policy and direction for the Agency and take responsibility for the delivery of the Agency’s Strategic Plan and Annual Action Plan in line with Defra’s overall strategy and priorities
- approve and set a full range of targets for the organisation and consider progress against them
- make decisions that are not delegated and consider escalations to AMB
- consider reports and escalations from sub-committees and sub-groups
- consider people management related issues for the Agency, review budgets and communications, and manage change initiatives
ET members
ET is led by Oliver Munn, the RPA’s Chief Executive (and Accounting Officer). Other core ET members are:
- Tom Foster, Grants Service Owner Director
- Ali Johnson, Service Delivery Director
- Mark Ashenden, Business Strategic Management Director
ET is also supported by the following business partners from the Defra Group’s corporate services:
- Sophia Haughton, RPA HR Director
- David Painter, Defra Digital Data and Technology Services Director
- Dan Gilbert, RPA Finance Director
Non-Executive Directors
Adrian Belton - Chair of AMB
Adrian was Chief Executive of the Government’s Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA) from 2009 to 2014, having established it from a 4-way merger including the Central Science Laboratory (where he was Chief Executive from 2008) and the UK Government Decontamination Service.
As Chief Executive of the Construction Industry Training Board from 2014 to 2016, he stepped down from full time Executive work to pursue a non-Executive career. He was chair of Stockport NHS Foundation Trust from 2017 to 2021, since when he has been a non-executive director of NHS Property Services Ltd.
He was also a lay member of the Council of the University of Sheffield from 2014 to 2023, having been interim chair of Council during 2022. In 2023, Adrian was appointed Chair of St Luke’s Hospice in Sheffield. He previously chaired the Board of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment from 2008 to 2013.
Alison White - Chair of ARAC
Alison is an experienced non-executive director and consultant. She is a qualified accountant, with extensive experience in commercial business and cross-sectoral regulation.
Alison chairs audit committees in diverse areas of public services, advising organisations about governance, risk and the transformation of organisational performance.
Paul Savage
Paul has extensive experience in governance, risk oversight and regulation across the agrifood, aviation and consumer protection sectors. His background spans cooperative governance, national policy development, statutory UK bodies and senior Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMSG) leadership, with a strong track record in sustainability, stakeholder assurance and organisational resilience.
He currently advises on risk and financial protection within the UK aviation insolvency framework, provides independent oversight to a national agricultural levy body, and chairs a farmer owned cooperative.
Paul’s executive career in consultancy and agricultural leadership adds valuable commercial insight, transformation expertise and AI literacy to RPA’s board.
David Brooks
David has substantial experience in risk management, governance, assurance and strategic delivery across cooperatives, public bodies, healthcare and food systems.
He has led major transformation and turnaround programmes in safety critical and publicly accountable environments, combining commercial acumen with broad sector insight to support boards through change and performance improvement.
He currently chairs risk and people committees across agricultural, environmental, seafood and NHS organisations.
His previous roles span consumer protection, local government transformation, technology implementation and corporate restructuring, alongside executive leadership positions in sport, food manufacturing and largescale commercial operations.
Sarah Calcutt
Sarah is an experienced food and farming professional with a strong record in governance, strategic leadership and stakeholder engagement across agri-tech, horticulture, fresh produce, farming, charities and national industry bodies.
She has led organisations through growth, restructuring and sector transformation, and is a highly effective communicator with significant experience representing industry to government, retailers and international partners.
She currently holds a portfolio of non-executive and trustee roles supporting major redevelopment programmes, agri-tech innovation and employee ownership governance.
Her previous leadership positions across the food, farming and charitable sectors, including chief executive and chair roles, give her a strong understanding of commercial strategy, sector growth and organisational resilience.
Stephen Briggs
Stephen is an experienced chair and non-executive director with a strong background in governance, risk oversight, regulation and strategic leadership across agriculture, food systems and the wider rural economy.
As a farmer and consultant for over 30 years, he combines commercial insight with deep sector knowledge, supporting organisations through transformation, cultural change and complex operational delivery.
His portfolio includes non-executive, advisory and industry leadership roles spanning sustainability, climate adaptation, digital transformation and data governance.
With extensive experience in organisational performance, strategic challenge and partnership building across public and private sectors, Stephen brings sound judgement, strong interpersonal skills and a practical, customer focused perspective to board decision making.