Approachable Certification is George’s brainchild. His success in the certification business is legendary. Firstly he grew a regional office of a large certification body (CB). With that thriving, he decided to use his knowledge and experience to set up his own CB. With his business partner, that became one of the most successful CBs in the country and was eventually sold. Three years passed and George was missing the industry he’s grown so fond of, so decided to set about growing another CB. And so Approachable Certification was born.
George has a large family which keeps him busy. When he’s not following his passions of playing golf or watching Manchester City, you’ll find him cheering on his racehorse or in Frankie’s the local Wine Bar.

Nigel’s no stranger to the world of certification either, having worked with five Certification Bodies during his career. Often the front man, ensuring that the website is attractive to customers, but also networking behind the scenes to bring in new leads. Nigel’s most successful venture was whilst previously working with George, who approached him once again to grow the business and ensure complete customer satisfaction.
Nigel’s an active type, spending much of his time on a tennis court or cycling around country lanes. At home, he can always be found listening to all sorts of music. He’s a seasoned traveller and enjoys nothing more than travelling to foreign climes with his wife.

Yes, you may have gathered, Rachel is related to George. His daughter acquired an enthusiasm for management systems whilst studying for her degree. This complements her IT and organisational skills, and commitment to ensuring the office runs like clockwork.
Rachel enjoys travelling and always likes to have her next trip planned. Around town she can often be spotted enjoying a night out with her friends. Rachel keeps fit by going to the gym and running around after her little boy.

Also George’s daughter (perhaps we should be called Maxwell Certification!), Emma graduated from Manchester Metropolitan University with degree in Marketing Management. She can now be found in our office putting her skills into action. All with the aim of making Approachable Certification a household name in the world of certification.
Emma enjoys cooking and has a passion for fitness and weight training. And if that paints just too perfect a picture, she spends her spare time enjoying family time with her partner and two girls.

Becky has joined Approachable Certification under training to become a Lead Auditor in ISO 9001. During University she studied Marine and Freshwater Biology and is hoping to put her environmental knowledge into practice in the future under ISO 14001. Having previously worked as a field scientist, she has decided to hang up her waders for more predictable climates auditing.
In her spare time she likes to spend time with friends. She also likes to keep fit and you’ll often find her in the gym or playing hockey competitively for her local club.

David is a technical and IT man through and through. He has worked in many different sectors including telecoms, food and power, as well as running his own IT company. It was whilst working in a power station he first came across ISO 27001. He found his technical skills and eye for detail were a real asset in the realm of management systems. After going on to implement Information Security Management Systems as a consultant, he wanted to learn more about auditing, so took steps to become proficient on both sides of the fence. After doing both for many years, David joined Approachable full-time to continue auditing and perfect our audit process.
He loves technology and is surrounded by it at home. David’s downtime includes supporting Leeds United and spending time with his wife and two boys.

No stranger to certification, Gary has worked in the industry since 2006, and was previously Certification Manager for another UKAS Accredited Certification Body. He has also had previous roles in the industry as a Lead Auditor, Competence Evaluator and External Trainer, training hundreds of people to become internal auditors against a range of ISO Standards. Gary has also held positions as a Quality, Environmental and Information Security Management Systems Consultant, as well as mangement roles in the financial and economic development sectors.

Gary joined the management team at Approachable in August 2023 as Technical Certification Manager, to support the continued growth of the business.

Outside of work, Gary is kept busy by his young daughter and Dalmatian, who he loves walking. He also enjoys playing and watching football, listening to music, and going on holiday with his wife and daughter.

Jenny is a pro in the certification business, having worked in it since the nineties. At Approachable, Jenny liaises with our customers and auditors to co-ordinate suitable audit dates and to ensure everything runs smoothly.
Jenny likes her nights out, soul music and sunny holidays, but as a grandmother of 3, she now spends more time at home with them and her exercise bike.

Amanda previously spent 25 years in an Accounting Centre as an Office Administrator, giving her lots of relevant skills and experience to join Approachable.
Her role includes liaising with our auditors and clients in the preparation and delivery of audit reports and scheduling audits.
Amanda likes to spend her free time with her daughter, enjoying countryside walks and overseas holidays.  She is also passionate about cooking.

Fahmeedah arrived at Approachable with lots of knowledge of the certification business and having previously worked with many of our team.
As Marketing Assistant she liaises with prospective clients and consultants to generate quotations. She says she always aims to do the best she can for them.
Outside of work, Fahmeedah is kept busy looking after her family and their beautiful big Maine Coon cat, Simba. She also likes long bike rides and says the use of the treadmill every day at home is a must!

Allan spent 22 years within the British Army as a Communications Engineer in the Royal Corps of Signals. This included serving all over the world on numerous operations and controlling multiple communications systems.
With his background in Communications, the move into specialising in ISO 27001 auditing was a natural progression.
Away from work, family time is of high importance to Allan, with trips away in the caravan greatly valued by the whole family.

James has a widespread knowledge base across several sectors.  He guided and managed many of his previous employers through ISO certification.
He joined Approachable having decided to switch to the other side and become the auditor, not the auditee.
Away from auditing, you are most likely to find James with his family, walking his dogs, attempting to be the next master chef, or on the golf course.

Phil’s background is in engineering and he spent many years in a variety of roles with British Aerospace.
Consequently, at Approachable, Phil can often be found auditing engineering companies, although he has many other strings to his bow.
A gifted sports fanatic, Phil’s passion is now golf, but he has played football, cricket, and many other sports over the years.

Reanna spent 20 years as an IT Business Analyst across many sectors and working internationally, implementing and improving IT systems. After considering a career change and with her husband also being a Lead Auditor, she thought she would move into the world of auditing and hasn’t looked back. Reanna joined Approachable as a Lead Auditor of ISO27001 as a natural fit to her experience in IT. Away from work Reanna enjoys spending time with her family and walking their ex-racing greyhound, Piper. She also enjoys volunteering, whether that be walking greyhounds at the local Greyhound Trust centre or supporting other local charities.

Starting as an engineering apprentice, Jim Gradually veered towards Quality and was soon auditing suppliers. He went on to provide independent consultancy, before becoming a certification body auditor. That was over 25 years and 5000 audits ago! Now with Approachable, Jim enjoys auditing a wide range of organisations, and with all his experience, provides technical support to our office team. He’s popular with our customers, going that extra mile to provide excellent service. Jim’s spare time is pretty much split two ways – playing golf (with a lot of time at the 19th hole!) and following Manchester City (as he has since 1964).

Keith’s an experienced Certification Manager and Lead Auditor with more than 35 years working knowledge of the certification industry. He’s worked for a number of Certification Bodies in the UK and has established and managed offices world-wide. Although now semi-retired, he remains busy and involved in the industry, passing on his knowledge and experience in all areas of the certification process. Keith’s an active Christian and likes to compose Christian songs. He enjoys golf and follows Stoke City FC.

Paul started his career as a Systems Engineer in the Royal Navy. During his 25-year service he visited 96 countries. So, you can truly say he has worked all over the world. During that time, his responsibilities included ensuring that work carried out on the ship met Defence and International Standards. It was therefore a natural progression to transition into a certification body for civilian life. Paul now works as a freelance auditor, trainer and consultant. He is knowledgeable in numerous management systems standards, specialising in ISO 27001. He has worked in industries as varied as recruitment, printing, IT services and construction. When not working, Paul and his wife enjoy walking their Cocker Spaniel and playing in the Salvation Army band. The sea still calls, and whilst Carol will accompany Paul on cruises, he hasn’t yet been able to persuade her to join him on his offshore yachting adventures.

Jim started his career as a Communications Operator in the Royal Corps of Signals. His 14-year service took him all over the world. He has installed management systems since the days of BS 5750. More recently he has been auditing for Certification Bodies. Jim now works as a freelance auditor and consultant and is knowledgeable in many management system standards. His specialist interest is OHSAS 18001. He has worked in industries as varied as communications, recruitment, printing, paper making and construction. Jim is a long-suffering supporter of Dunfermline Athletic FC. Impressively, he has been a season ticket holder since he was eight years old. He also enjoys volunteering on the Children’s Panel in Scotland.

By trade, Tony is a qualified toolmaker, but for most of his life he has worked in Quality Assurance. Extensively in the oil and aerospace sectors, as well as printing, furniture manufacture and defence. At Approachable Certification, his specialist areas are manufacturing (especially precision engineering) and textiles (including weaving and engineered textiles). When not working, Tony can often be found sailing, restoring a boat or classic car, or starring in a local musical theatre production.

Debs (as she is known by all) started her career in the food industry very early on in life. This was largely helped by her parents owning a fish and chip shop where she served her apprenticeship. From there she went on to be a lab technician in a flour mill and steadily worked her way up the ladder until she became the Quality and Technical Manager at a well-known food company. In 2004 she decided to diversify her career path and become a quality auditor. Debs says it’s the best thing she ever did work wise. Now, as well as the food industry, she audits haulage, engineering, transport, construction and cleaning companies to name but a few. Debs also independently provides consultancy to organisations needing help to implement or maintain their management systems. She enjoys the 50/50 split. Debs considers herself the matriarch of her large family, which she endeavours to keep in control. She enjoys creative arts such as sewing, knitting, baking and making wine. An avid animal lover, Debs owns two cats, a dog and a horse.

After graduating, Julie developed computer systems for several large, well known IT and Telecoms corporations. She gained a passion for management systems and changed tracks to provide business improvement consultancy, ultimately becoming a Lead Auditor in 2012. Julie audits all the leading management system standards for Approachable, still specialising in her roots of IT and Telecoms. Julie enjoys horse-riding, swimming, taking her daughter to the cinema and socialising with friends from her husband’s days in the Navy.

After 25 years in quality management roles in the Automotive, Aerospace, Electronics and Motor Sport sectors, a consultancy project led Jazz to a chance meeting with a Lead Auditor from a Certification Body. That in turn, led to a 15-year stretch as a Lead Auditor himself, working in the manufacturing, engineering, security, recruitment and IT sectors.
Jazz now undertakes quality, environmental and health & safety audits for Approachable. He also provides consultancy for companies looking to upgrade or modernise their management systems.
Jazz lives on the edge of the South Downs National Park with his wife, grown up children, dogs, cats, chickens and a parrot! His interests include tennis, golf, hill walking and maintaining his large garden. He also runs Slindon cricket Club, which claims to be the oldest cricket club in England.

Stuart started his career in petrochemicals before moving into shipbuilding and construction, always employing his knowledge of production management and welding. Setting up in 2017 as a freelance Management Systems Implementer and Auditor, Stuart now audits both ISO 9001 and ISO 14001 for Approachable. As well as holidays, his spare time is taken up with competition clay shooting and the restoration of antique shotguns.

From starting as an apprentice, John has moved through many organisations with increasing responsibilities, all against a backdrop of manufacturing. His experience evolved from the quality arena into both environmental and health & safety. At Approachable, John uses his 30 years’ technical, operational and strategic leadership experience to audit ISO 9001 and 14001. John likes to travel and play golf at new venues. He has supported West Ham Utd since childhood (but wonders why). He also admits to having an obsession for cleaning his car!

Steve started his career as an engineer in the defence sector, before progressing into aerospace with increased involvement in the world of quality. He then spent many years in IT before combining all these skills to become a lead auditor with a certification body. Deciding that being employed wasn’t for him, he set up his own business as a management consultant and freelance auditor. Steve says the mix gives him a greater understanding of both roles. Being a self-confessed beer aficionado, Steve set up a micro-brewery. He enjoys cooking, motorcycling and walking the Shropshire Hills, where he lives with his wife Jill.

Kerrell started auditing for Approachable after she set up her own company. Previously employed as a Compliance and Risk Director, Kerrell knows auditing from both sides of the fence.
Kerrell consults in all the standards offered by Approachable. Her background is in security, but she has developed expertise in software development and many other sectors.
Outside work, Kerrell’s life revolves around her two dogs. She loves to cook and bake and is an avid fan of American Football and travelling around the USA.

Mike has a multitude of skills, being a lead auditor for ISO 9001, 14001 and ISO 45001, as well as an acclaimed trainer. He is no stranger to certification, having worked with his previous certification body for sixteen years. He has undertaken audits in a wide range of industries, both in the UK and overseas.
Mike is a very keen gardener and maintains a lively interest in dance music.

Michelle joined us with over 20 years’ experience working within technical and professional services. In particular as an Executive Director in the legal industry.
Currently providing consultancy services and the CEO of her own company, Michelle says that the best part of being a Lead Auditor for Approachable is the friendly, and extremely knowledgeable team. We’re honoured!
In a previous life, she was a martial arts Instructor. Still active, in her spare time, Michelle enjoys travelling and hiking around Iceland, America and Australia.