Membership

Read the minutes of our monthly meetings and find out about the members of the committee.

Meeting dates 2017

  • 11 October
  • 8 November
  • 13 December

Meeting dates 2018

  • 24 January
  • 7 March
  • 11 April
  • 23 May
  • 20 June
  • 25 July
  • 12 September
  • 10 October
  • 7 November
  • 12 December

Minutes of meetings

2017

May 2017 minutes (PDF, 137KB, 9 pages)

March 2017 minutes (PDF, 180KB, 16 pages)

January 2017 minutes (PDF, 210KB, 21 pages)

2016

December 2016 minutes (PDF, 156KB, 13 pages)

November 2016 minutes (PDF, 212KB, 22 pages)

October 2016 minutes (PDF, 173KB, 13 pages)

September 2016 minutes (PDF, 120KB, 4 pages)

July 2016 minutes (PDF, 150KB, 10 pages)

June 2016 minutes (PDF, 197KB, 21 pages)

May 2016 minutes (PDF, 146KB, 10 pages)

April 2016 minutes (PDF, 204KB, 7 pages)

March 2016 minutes (PDF, 148KB, 9 pages)

January 2016 minutes (PDF, 185KB, 18 pages)

Older minutes

Go to the National Archives for older SSAC minutes.

Paul Gray – chair of the committee

The chair of the committee is Paul Gray CB.

The committee members are as follows:

Rachael Badger

Rachael Badger is part of the Finance and Transformation team at Citizens Advice, having been their Head of Policy Research for Families, Welfare and Work between 2013 and 2016. Between 2003 and 2013, Rachael was a civil servant and had a variety of roles within the Department for Work and Pensions and HM Treasury.

Bruce Calderwood

Bruce Calderwood is a trustee of the Avenues Group, a charity specialising in supporting people with complex needs. He was for many years a senior official in DWP in a wide range of roles. He ended his civil service career as the director in the Department of Health responsible for policy on mental health, disability and equality. In this role he led the team which created the 2010 to 2015 coalition government’s mental health strategy and its review of services for learning disabled people following the Winterbourne View scandal. He chairs inspections of mental health trusts for the Care Quality Commission and is an instructor in Mental Health First Aid for the Armed Forces Community.

Carl Emmerson

Carl is Deputy Director of the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS). He is an editor of the annual IFS Green Budget, and his research includes analysis of the UK public finances and the design of the tax and benefit system, in particular relating to state and private pensions. He has previously served as a specialist adviser to the House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee.

Colin Godbold

Colin Godbold is Vice Chair of the committee and a consultant specialising in the delivery of large scale information technology and organisational change programmes. He is a former partner in IBM’s consultancy and services practice. In his 30-year experience, he has led the delivery of complex programmes in both the public and private sectors. He is a fellow of the British Computer Society and is a chartered and European Engineer.

Chris Goulden

Chris Goulden is Deputy Director of Policy and Research at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. He is a former social researcher at the Home Office and Cabinet Office. Chris has also been a cancer researcher in the NHS, a member of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills Policy Expert Group and a member of the Social Research Association Board. He has a masters degree in social research methods from South Bank University.

Dr Jim McCormick

Dr Jim McCormick is the Scotland member of the Social Security Advisory Committee. He is Associate Director for Scotland with the Joseph Rowntree Foundation and an advisory board member to Business in the Community (BITC) Scotland. In February 2017 the Scottish Government appointed Jim as chair of the independent Disability and Carers’ Benefits Expert Advisory Group. He was previously a member of the Commission on Local Tax Reform and Director of independent thinktank the Scottish Council Foundation (SCF).

Gráinne McKeever

Gráinne McKeever is an executive director and former chair of the Law Centre, Northern Ireland, a not-for-profit specialist advice organisation. She is a Professor of Law and Social Justice at Ulster University and has published widely in the areas of social security law and access to justice. She is the assistant editor of the Journal of Social Security Law and currently teaches social security law and policy to undergraduate and postgraduate law students. Gráinne is the director of Ulster University’s Law Clinic, through which postgraduate law students provide social security advocacy for members of the public.

Dominic Morris

Dom has advised senior decision makers and military commanders in strategy and change management on welfare’s frontline and in war zones. His passion for welfare reform is a deeply personal one. Serious illness forced Dom to give up flying in the RAF. Living with chronic pain, he started his work in the welfare system with the Prince’s Trust and Millennium Volunteers getting young people back in to work. Such was the effect on him that he stood for Parliament, advocating the need to get welfare reforms right in order to get more young people into work and tackle the disability employment gap.

Seyi Obakin OBE

Seyi Obakin OBE is the Chief Executive of Centrepoint, a leading national charity working with young people who have experienced homelessness. He is a chartered accountant and has worked in a wide range of social housing provision. He has also been involved in research and inquiries into family life and the support families need, lifelong literacy and youth enterprise. He is currently serving as a Commissioner of the UK Commission for Employment and Skills.

Judith Paterson

Judith Paterson has worked in the field of social security law and advice for more than 25 years and is currently leading a Scotland-wide, second tier welfare rights service for the Child Poverty Action Group in Scotland. Her work involves contributing to social policy work and analysing legislation and issues arising from casework for their impact on individuals, families and services.

Charlotte Pickles

Charlotte (Charlie) is a Theme Editor (Renewing Capitalism) at UnHerd. Her previous roles include:

  • Deputy Director and Head of Research at the Reform think tank
  • expert adviser to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions during the 2010 to 2015 coalition government
  • Director of Policy at the Centre for Social Justice
  • working in the public sector practice of a global management consultancy

Liz Sayce OBE

Liz was the Chief Executive of Disability Rights UK until 30 May 2017, leading work to achieve equal participation for all, through programmes on independent living, career opportunities and shifts in cultural attitudes and behaviour. With a background in mental health and disability policy, previous roles include Director of Policy and Communications at the Disability Rights Commission and Policy Director of Mind. Liz led an independent review into disability employment programmes for government in 2011 and has published widely on mental health, disability and social participation. Liz is also a member of the committee of Healthwatch England and is a member on the board of the Equality and Diversity Forum.

Victoria Todd

Victoria is a senior technical manager for the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG) of the Chartered Institute of Taxation. In that role, she leads work on tax credits, represents the interests of low income taxpayers in the tax system and represents LITRG at a number of HMRC forums and groups. She also writes on tax credits for claimants and their advisers, lectures to adviser audiences and broadcasts on radio. She is a member of the Association of Tax Technicians.

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