Reappointments to governing body of further education colleges

Belfast Metropolitan College

Ms Yvonne Murphy

Ms Murphy has 30 years’ experience of supporting and empowering young people gained in the information and education sectors. From 2009–2020 she was College Librarian of Keble College, Oxford. She oversaw all aspects of the College’s information portfolio. Work undertaken included a number of successful student-focussed and technology driven initiatives. She sat on Academic Committee, represented Keble on external committees and served as mentor for new librarians.                                                                                                       

From 1995–2009, she managed the Northern Ireland Political Collection at Belfast’s Linen Hall Library. During her time there, the Collection expanded from 80,000–250,000 items and she developed the Troubled Images project on the graphics of the conflict. The related exhibition toured in 3 continents, and the project was awarded the Christopher Ewart Biggs Award for promoting peace between Ireland and Britain. Earlier in her career, she worked at Chatham House and taught English at Methodist College.

Yvonne has extensive fundraising experience, has spoken internationally on professional issues and has been awarded International and Voluntary Visitor Scholarships by the US Government. She is the first librarian to undertake the Institute of Directors Diploma in Company Direction and is a member of the IOD and the Chartered Institute of Library & Information Professionals.

Yvonne does not hold any other public appointments.

Mr Seamus McGoran

Mr McGoran is an independent management consultant who worked for 35 years as a public servant within Health and Social Care until his retirement in 2021. He is currently a mentor to a number of senior executives, and he works with a range of organisations supporting organisational development, leadership and workforce development. 

He graduated from Queen’s University, Belfast in 1986 with a BA Honours Degree in Italian and spent the first 10 years of his career working as a Human Resources practitioner. He has been a Member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development since he gained his professional qualifications with distinction in 1992. 

Seamus worked at executive level for 25 years with the last 2 years undertaking the role of Chief Executive of the South Eastern Health and Social Care Trust, which is one of the largest employers in Northern Ireland. During this time, he led the organisation through a challenging period of industrial action and through the Covid-19 pandemic. 

Seamus does not hold any other public appointments.

Mrs Lauren McAteer

With 15 years’ experience in Northern Ireland’s Retail & Hospitality sectors at Management and Executive level, Mrs McAteer has extensive Operational, Strategic HR and Organisational Development experience.  Employed in one of Northern Irelands most progressive and successful Hospitality Groups for a period of 12 years until 2021, Lauren has also developed multidisciplinary expertise to include the areas of Health & Safety and GDPR.  She has been the recipient of Awards from the Institute of Hospitality and the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development. Lauren is a Chartered Member of the Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD), she also holds Associate membership of the Institution of Occupational Safety & Health (IOSH) and professional membership of the International Coaching Federation (ICF).

Having recently established as a Freelance Consultant & Coach, Lauren is passionate about people development, enhancing workplaces and organisational cultures.  She also volunteers as a CIPD Mentor and sits as Trustee on The Gallaher Trust, which is an Independent Charity focusing on local Employment & Skills Development.

Lauren does not hold any other public appointments.

Northern Regional College

Mrs Denise McIlwaine 

Mrs McIlwaine formerly worked as a Human Resources (HR) Business Partner in Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council. As a Chartered member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) Denise provided HR support, coaching, advice and guidance to directors and managers. 

From July 2015 until July 2025, Denise was a Lay Member on the Solicitors’ Disciplinary Tribunal panel (remunerated). Since September 2025, she has been appointed as a Lay Member to the Professional Conduct Committee (remunerated) and more recently as a non-legal panel member to the Office of Industrial Tribunals and Fair Employment (OITFET) (remunerated) in November 2025. Denise was an ad hoc consultant for Antrim & Newtownabbey Borough Council in 2024. 

 She was previously an appointee of the Department of Education as representative member to the Northern Ireland Council for Integrated Education (NICIE) Board of Directors, (non-remunerated, travel and subsistence expenses only). Within this position Denise was also active as a sub-committee member for the Finance and General Purposes Staffing Committee, monitoring financial performance and ensuring that essential systems and controls were in place for the organisation. 

Previously as a retail manager, Denise gained valuable financial, operational and auditing experience. 

Denise also has significant experience in health care settings having worked for Boots Chemist and Boots Opticians for almost sixteen years. She also managed the family Nursing Home business for two years.  Denise currently has a post as a Macmillan Information and Support Volunteer at the Causeway Hospital (non-renumerated).

Denise does not hold any other public appointments.

North West Regional College

Dr Siân Fisher

Dr Fisher is a practising lawyer and a member of the Bar of Northern Ireland, having been called to the Bar in 2008. In her 15 years as a lawyer, Siân has gained a broad range of experience across many practice areas, with a particular focus on civil litigation and public law. During this time, Siân has advised and represented private individuals, companies and local authorities in a range of legal disputes.

Siân was awarded a Master’s in Human Rights Law in 2007, with a particular focus on issues relevant to Northern Ireland and transitional justice. In 2023 Siân obtained her Ph.D with the School of Law, Queen’s University Belfast, for her doctoral thesis which examined the international legal responsibility to protect populations against mass atrocity crimes.

Siân is a Department of Education School Governor of Acorn Integrated Primary School, Carrickfergus.

Siân does not hold any other public appointments.

Mrs Mary Gormley 

Mrs Gormley is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in Ireland (ICAI), with over 30 years’ experience working in the private and public sectors, predominantly in economic development, job creation, business support and change management.

As Head of Entrepreneurship at Invest NI, Mary has responsibility for providing strategic direction, leading Innovation Driven Entrepreneurship initiatives, working closely with stakeholders to promote and grow innovative enterprises. 

Mary has previously held a number of key roles across the organisation including in Corporate Finance, Regional Office Management (North West region & Western region), European Regional Development Funding and has led the delivery of a number of the Department for the Economy’s Covid Emergency Schemes and the programme management office with responsibility for facilitating Invest NI’s response to the Independent Review.

Mary is currently a member of the Advisory Board of Ulster University’s Centre for Legal Technology.

Mary holds a BA Hons in Business Studies and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management Studies and has previously served as a member of the Board of Governors of two local primary schools.

Mary does not hold any other public appointments.

Mrs Charlene Shongo 

Mrs Shongo has over 10 years’ experience working within Strategic Management, Commercial and Marketing roles within the Aviation industry.  Employed as Airport General Manager & Accountable Manager at City of Derry Airport before taking up a leadership role within the Healthcare sector during the Covid-19 pandemic.  Charlene has extensive experience working at a strategic level, with excellent leadership skills and experience of strategic oversight and governance.  

Charlene is currently employed as Corporate Business Lead for Strategic Planning and Performance Group of the Department of Health, responsible for corporate governance, business planning frameworks, contract management, asset and estates management as well as Financial and Resource Management across SPPG properties. 

She graduated with a BSc (Hons) degree before successfully completing a Master of Science degree in Communication, specialising in Strategic Management and Marketing from Queen’s University Belfast. Charlene also obtained a First-Class (Hons) in Business Management from Michael Smurfit School of Business, University College Dublin. 

Charlene attended the William J Clinton Leadership Institute at Queen’s University Belfast where she successfully completed the Emerging Leaders Programme.   

In 2020, she completed the Boardroom Apprentice Programme which enabled her to gain skills and experience to serving on a public or third sector board. Charlene recently completed the MBA programme at QUB and is currently completing a Master of Science degree in Business Improvement at the University of Ulster Belfast. 

She has served on the Board of NWRC since 2022. She previously served on the Board of Developing Healthy Communities (2020-2023), Visit Derry (2017–2019), Letterkenny Chamber of Commerce (2014–2019) and Causeway Chamber of Commerce (2017–2018). 

Charlene does not hold any other public appointments. 

Mr Peter Thompson

Mr Thompson has worked in a public sector role for the past 27 years and prior to that spent 4 years working in the Further Education sector. He currently works for Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council and is responsible for the tourism development and destination management remit, including the areas of marketing, product development, trade engagement and business support. This service also provides a balanced portfolio of major events across the borough and facilitates partnership with other event promoters.

In addition, Peter is responsible for the Council’s outdoor recreational spaces and the service manages six Holiday and Leisure Parks across the Borough. His role prioritises economic development and the need to develop and sustain the region as a high quality recreational and visitor destination for the benefit of the area’s residents, the business sector and visitors hosted within our community.

Peter does not hold any other public appointments.

Southern Regional College

Mr Gary McMurray

Mr McMurray is currently working as a Money and Debt Adviser, on a part-time basis, with Community Advice Craigavon having previously worked for AIB Bank for 35 years. Mr McMurray was latterly Head of Governance and Assurance for the UK Operations and Business Governance unit within the Bank which included responsibility for risk management, governance oversight of third-party providers, and Business Continuity Management including incident management. 

Gary holds a BA (Hons) in Business Studies and an MSc in Business Improvement both from the University of Ulster and is a former Chair of the Institute of Bankers in Ireland Belfast Region.

He is also a Lay Council Member and Chair of the Finance & Performance Committee of the Pharmaceutical Society of Northern Ireland (a public appointment with remuneration of £285 per full day and with a time commitment of 12 days per annum) and is a Lay Representative of the Performance and Audit Committee of Armagh City, Banbridge & Craigavon Borough Council. He has also served on the boards of a number of local voluntary organisations.

Mrs Hilary Singleton OBE 

Mrs Singleton is a former practising solicitor who spent her professional career in private legal practice. She has also over thirty years’ experience in senior governance roles in the public and community sectors. She has been a Board Member of the International Fund for Ireland, appointed jointly to the role by the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland and Minister for Foreign Affairs and Trade in Ireland. She has also been Deputy Chair of the Health and Safety Executive of Northern Ireland (HSENI) and Chair of HSENI’s Audit and Risk Committee, a Board member of the Ulster-Scots Agency, chairing its Education Committee and Audit and Risk Committee, Chair of the Southern Zone Steering Group of the Social Investment Fund and a School Governor. She was also a member of the Compact Civil Advisory Panel to which she was appointed by the former First and Deputy First Ministers. 

Hilary has been a member of the Governing Body of Southern Regional College (SRC) since January 2022, becoming Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee in August 2022 and has been Vice Chair of SRC since August 2023. She also serves as a member of SRC’s Education Committee. She brings considerable experience to the role in SRC in the areas of governance, strategic leadership, change management and stakeholder engagement.

She is currently a Lay Board member of the Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service (a public appointment with remuneration of £6,643 pa) where she is Chair of the Service Delivery Committee and a Member of the Audit and Risk Committee. She is a Director of Mid-Armagh Community Network, a charitable organisation and a member of the Local Government Staff Commission (a public appointment with remuneration of £126 per meeting). In 2022, Hilary was awarded an OBE for services to the Community Sector.

South West College

Dr Lynsey Quinn 

Dr Quinn is a chartered company secretary by profession and has a strong track record in business development, governance, and policy-influencing research across higher education, industry, and the public sector. 

Whilst studying part-time, Lynsey held several private and public sector leadership roles across Ireland, where she led award-nominated research and consultancy projects recognised internationally and published in leading academic journals.

With a strong industry background prior to entering academia, she now leads Private Sector Development at The Open University, with responsibility for employer engagement and professional development, ensuring solutions align with organisational strategy and deliver measurable impact through learning.

She has been a member of the Governing Body of South West College since January 2022. 

Lynsey does not hold any other public appointments.

Ms Anne McCleary OBE

Ms McCleary is a lawyer by profession and retired in May 2023 as Director of Social Security Policy and Legislation and Decision Making Services in the Department for Communities. She has over 25 years’ experience working as a lawyer, legal advisor, senior manager, leader and policy advisor in various roles in both the private and public sectors. She holds a LLB (Honours) and Certificate in Professional Legal Studies from QUB and a MBA from UU.  Anne was awarded an OBE in the King’s Birthday Honours in 2023. 

Anne is President of Fusion Theatre, a charity which is a cross community youth theatre group which she co-founded in 2000.

She has been a member of the Governing Body of South West College since January 2022. 

Anne does not hold any other public appointments.

Mrs Sandra Isherwood 

Mrs Isherwood has been the Principal of Jones Memorial Primary School in Enniskillen since 2004. An Education Graduate with a Masters in Computer Science, she has worked in various Key Stages in her career.

Sandra has extensive experience in leadership, assessment and inclusion, with over 30 years’ experience in the teaching profession. She has served on the steering group for the Peace IV Aspire Programme and currently coordinates the Peace IV project across the Fermanagh Cluster, sharing good practice at regional conferences.

She is a member of the Education and Development Services (EDS) team with responsibility for assessment and Special Educational Needs. She also leads the Extended Schools Programme across the cluster and acts as the Department of Education RAISE Schools Liaison Officer for Fermanagh.

A qualified SENCO for over 15 years, Sandra supports capacity building across the locality, including hosting cluster meetings to upskill staff. She also undertakes assessment responsibilities within Initial Teacher Education.

She has been a member of the Governing Body of South West College since January 2022. 

Sandra does not hold any other public appointments.