Board of Directors

Peter Beaumont has a wealth of experience in the IT and financial services industries including insurance and banking. Peter took up the role of Finance Director with Cornish Mutual in January 2009, and became Managing Director from December 2019, although he was acting MD from October 2019 following his selection in July 2019. Peter has held various director-level appointments covering both finance and operations. Having trained and qualified as a Chartered Accountant within a public practice, Peter has spent his career within commerce. With a track record of introducing change, he is committed to further developing and delivering a first-class service to all Cornish Mutual Members.

Paul has extensive experience in financial services having begun his career in 1992 working with Guardian Insurance. He then spent many years in the London Insurance Market and worked for Ernst & Young and PwC acting as a consultant to many of the UK's leading general insurers. Paul, a Chartered Insurer, is a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute and a graduate of the University of Birmingham. He joined Cornish Mutual in 2011 and became a Member of the Board in 2018 taking up the role of Insurance Director. Paul is passionate about the rural community in the South West and he knows the region very well having spent his childhood growing up in South Devon. Paul is married with two children and he lives on the South Cornwall coast in Falmouth.

Clare has worked in the insurance industry for 15 years, having undertaken her chartered accountancy training in London, while working as a forensic accountant, advising insurers on the quantum of complex losses. She is a graduate of the University of Durham and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales. Clare moved to Cornwall in 2011 and shortly after began working at Cornish Mutual becoming Financial Controller in 2016. Clare is married to a Cornish farmer, and along with their two young children, they live on a grassland farm near Falmouth, which has been in her husband's family for five generations. The farm has a herd of suckler beef cattle along with a range of diversified interests.

Jeremy previously worked nationally in farm management for both corporate institutions and private individuals. He was able to return to Cornwall to start his own farming business which now provides land management solutions to a number of local landowners. In addition, Jeremy also runs a vegetable processing company supplying a number of major local food producers. He has been a member of Cornish Mutual for many years for both his business and private needs. Jeremy also works to provide support to a number of local rural businesses and organisations.

Having spent his whole career in the insurance industry, Richard Lane was appointed to Cornish Mutual's Board in 2018. He has previously been Managing Director at Ansvar Insurance, part of the Ecclesiastical Group, also having worked at LV, Zurich and RSA.  Richard initially worked in the rural and farming communities of East, West and North Yorkshire as well as Lincolnshire at various times and locations. He developed his career working on developing specialist products and services before embarking on more operational and then strategic leadership roles. Richard also served as an Army Reservist. He has served on his local Parochial Church Council and has been a school Governor at both primary and senior school levels. He is both a Chartered Insurer and a Chartered Manager. 

David Fursdon is actively involved in his diversified family farming business in Devon while also holding positions in leading agricultural organisations. These include chairing the Institute of Agriculture and Horticulture (TIAH) and Dyson Farming. He is also a Food, Farming and Countryside Commissioner, a Trustee of the Royal Countryside Fund and a rural non-executive for the Duchy of Cornwall. He chaired the Government’s ‘Future of Farming’ review in 2013, the South West Rural Productivity Commission in 2017 and the Independent Review of the Management of Protected Sites on Dartmoor in 2023.

Jane Quicke is also involved with her family farming business, holding a leadership role in the Devon-based dairy farm specialising in clothbound cheddar. She has extensive experience in sales, finance, risk mitigation and business strategy, having spent several years in financial and professional service companies in both the UK and Canada.

Owen began his career with Lloyds Banking Group, working across retail, corporate banking and wealth management. He moved into financial services, holding senior roles at Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns and JP Morgan, culminating in his tenure at EY as a Managing Partner. At EY, Owen focused on large-scale transformation projects and regulatory matters, advising FTSE 100 and Fortune 1000 companies, as well as government regulators, on operational and risk frameworks.

A passionate advocate for effective governance, Owen serves on Audit and Risk Committees for Innovate UK Loans Ltd, Audit Wales and Blackpool Airport Operating Company, alongside trustee roles at Scouts and AbilityNet.

Owen holds qualifications from University College Dublin, the University of Limerick and Harvard Business School. He is a member of the Institute of Directors and an associate of the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors.

From a long line of farmers, Bridget is a dairy farmer working alongside her daughters in a family partnership. She has an honours degree in Agriculture from former Devon college Seale Hayne, and qualifications in management, communications and assessment with experience in teaching and assessing within the farming industry.  

As well as her on-farm experience, Bridget has held several leadership roles in the farming community, leading diverse teams and target-driven projects. She is a former National Farmers Union County Chair for Cornwall. Her active involvement in political, economic and disease control issues, as well as local charities, gives Bridget a deep understanding of the current challenges in agriculture. Bridget is also a preacher in her local Methodist Church.