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The Legal Services Board (LSB) has made three senior appointments intended to strengthen its ability to hold the legal services regulators to account and improve outcomes for people who use legal services.
Shona Barton joins as Director, Regulatory Oversight, leading the LSB’s oversight of the regulators. Sam Wood joins as Head of Performance & Oversight, leading scrutiny of regulators’ performance against the LSB’s standards. Atika Thomson joins as Head of Policy Development & Delivery, helping the LSB deliver on its strategy. Shona and Sam will take up their roles in January 2027, while Atika will start in December 2026.
Key points
- Shona Barton, Sam Wood and Atika Thomson have been appointed to new senior roles at the LSB.
- Barton most recently built Ofcom’s first regulatory supervision function, focused on services regulated under the Online Safety Act, and previously spent over six years at the Financial Conduct Authority.
- Wood is currently Head of Enforcement at Ofgem, where he oversees investigations and regulatory casework, and was previously a Senior Investigator at the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman.
- Thomson has held senior roles at the UK Civil Aviation Authority, the UK Space Agency and Ofgem, including leading development of the UK’s commercial spaceflight regime.
- Barton and Wood start in January 2027, and Thomson starts in December 2026.
Backgrounds of the appointees
According to the LSB’s published biographies, Barton was previously Head of Strategy and Operations in Ofcom’s regulatory supervision function, where she was pivotal in building the function from inception, defining its oversight strategy, governance framework and decision-making processes. Before Ofcom, she held various positions at the Financial Conduct Authority, including leading the supervision of large insurance groups, and earlier worked in dispute resolution at the Financial Ombudsman Service and in quality, compliance and complaints handling in financial services companies.
Wood has experience in regulatory oversight, enforcement decision-making, stakeholder engagement and organisational performance, the LSB said. At the Prisons and Probation Ombudsman he led investigations into serious incidents and made recommendations to improve organisational performance and reduce future harm.
Thomson has expertise in enforcement, legal and regulatory matters, stakeholder engagement and international cooperation, and has led initiatives to improve inclusion within the UK space regulator, according to the LSB.
Comment from the LSB
LSB chief executive Richard Orpin said: “I am delighted that Shona, Sam and Atika are joining our senior team. They each have significant experience in effective, proportionate regulation, and they share a clear focus on making regulation work well for consumers. Their experience will strengthen how we hold the regulators to account and help us deliver on our strategic priorities at a time of real change for the sector. I’m delighted to welcome them to the LSB.”
Barton said: “I am honoured to be joining the LSB at such an important time. I look forward to working with regulators, consumers, and stakeholders to embed a risk-based approach to our oversight, improve consumer outcomes, and maintain trust and confidence in the legal services sector.”
Wood said: “I’m delighted to join the Legal Services Board. I look forward to bringing my regulatory and enforcement experience to the role, supporting strong oversight, effective performance and a continued focus on delivering better outcomes for consumers and the public.”
Thomson said: “I’m really pleased to be joining the Legal Services Board. Throughout my career, I’ve been passionate about making regulation work better for those it serves, and I’m particularly looking forward to working together to deliver meaningful, lasting change that benefits everyone who relies on legal services.”