Debbie joined EML in 1999 as a trainee Employment Tribunal Consultant and went on to provide employment law consultancy to clients for almost ten years. Following a short spell at EEF, she returned to EML in 2012 as Managing Director. 

Although still our go-to Employment Tribunal advocacy expert, Debbie now focuses most of her time on business development, managing the financial position of the company and people development, and is proud to lead such a fantastic team of professional consultants.

Debbie’s proudest achievement is graduating from St Catharine’s College, Cambridge University with a Degree in Economics. She also holds a Postgraduate Diploma in Human Resource Management and a Postgraduate Diploma in Law.

Away from work, and in an effort to become more flexible, Debbie enjoys jogging and Pilates classes. She is a happily married, devoted mum to two children as well as a Labradoodle called Woody. After a long day at work, she loves taking a brisk walk with her furry friend near the family home in Culcheth, Warrington.

Our Director, Chris, is involved in every aspect of the business, from recruitment, service delivery, advertising, business development and sales and marketing, right through to strategic direction, structure and business performance. As Head of HR, Chris mentors team members, and acts as a sounding board for them, whilst still retaining some key client accounts.

Chris discovered HR following a varied career during which he travelled the world and spent time studying in London as a ‘mature’ student. He funded his own CIPD qualification, completing it at night school whilst working in a customer service role to tide him over. The day after he graduated, he started as a Graduate Trainee at EML and the rest is history.

Married with three children, Chris is a frustrated professional footballer and now spends most of his weekends cheering on his children’s football teams, two of them in his capacity as their coach. He says this is something his long-standing interest in Sir Alex Ferguson’s methods has stood him in good stead for! Chris also loves going to concerts and has been lucky to see the likes of Pink Floyd, The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Stone Roses and Oasis!

Fun fact: Chris is proud to have been a ball boy for Manchester United in the 1980s!

Adelle is EML’s longest serving HR Consultant and loves the variety and challenge of her role. Managing client projects such as employee grievance investigations to fielding quick-fire HR queries means every day is different. The EML business model encourages consultants to get to know their clients and their businesses and Adelle will do everything she can to go that extra mile.

Adelle’s career started in the travel industry, working overseas as a Resort Representative then into the office as a Resort Office/Hub Manager. On her return to the UK, Adelle took a temporary role as a HR Administrator and quickly fell in love with her work. She is CIPD qualified.

Outside of work, Adelle volunteers with IndepenDANCE, a Warrington-based dance company her daughter attends. She is actively involved in their annual shows, from costume design to behind-the-scenes organisation and especially loves creating the video content used in the productions. Adelle is also a seasoned Dave Day volunteer, an annual charity fundraising event in memory of the late Dave Myers, TV chef and one half of the Hairy Bikers. 

Since Ted the Cavapoo joined the family, he’s taken over where her kids left off and Adelle now spends her spare time pandering to his every whim! Adelle loves the sun and loves to travel, even if this means a trip to the local beach with the family and Ted.

Fun fact: Adelle once volunteered as a gravestone transcriber!

Jo is a Chartered CIPD member with extensive HR and training experience across manufacturing, construction, and distribution. A driven HR professional, she specialises in creating effective people strategies, developing talent and enhancing leadership and organisational performance.

A trained facilitator with a PTLLS qualification and a certified life coach, Jo is passionate about empowering others through training and coaching. Before joining EML, she spent three years as an HR Growth Coach supporting HR teams and senior managers, following a career in diverse HR roles including Regional HR Manager and HR Manager positions.

Throughout her career in HR, Jo has been heavily involved in the design and delivery of training such as Modern Slavery and Labour Exploitation, Recruitment and Selection and other HR related topics. She has also worked with Senior Leadership Teams to deliver soft skills training including motivation, communication, apprentice management and change management.

Jo is EML’s Outplacement specialist, supporting individuals through redundancy and retirement with a personalised, confidence-building approach. She is an accredited DISC practitioner and Master NLP Practitioner, using these tools to help individuals and organisations achieve meaningful personal and professional growth.

In her spare time, Jo is a busy mum of 1 who enjoys walking her Japanese Akita named Yoshi (or does he walk her!) and is captain and treasurer of her local netball team. Jo is also an associate and volunteer for ‘Mummy’s Star’, a unique charity supporting women and families affected by cancer.

Fun fact: Jo is a keen fundraiser and has raised over £60,000 for charity!

Ryan brings extensive experience advising employers on complex HR and legal matters. CIPD qualified, Ryan specialises in case management, advocacy, employee relations and resolving sensitive workplace issues, with a passion for coaching, training and building effective working relationships.

Ryan began his career with a leading UK energy provider, where he progressed through several leadership roles in a heavily unionised environment. Managing teams of up to 90 employees, he gained significant experience supporting line managers and navigating complex employee relations matters. Ryan later went on to lead the HR function for a utilities contractor, further strengthening his expertise in policy development, employee relations, and HR training.

In 2021, Ryan transitioned into consultancy, specialising in high-risk, complex HR cases and internal business support. By combining his legal expertise with his passion for coaching and development, he provides pragmatic, commercially focused and tailored HR and employment law advice and support to clients.

Fun fact: While on holiday, Ryan once played the role of an astronaut in front of a live studio audience at Universal Studios Los Angeles!

Tim is an experienced HR Consultant specialising in end-to-end case and project management. With a Law degree alongside GDL, LPC and CIPD qualifications, he combines strong legal and HR expertise with a pragmatic and commercially focused approach.

Throughout his career, Tim has worked across a wide range of industries with extensive management experience in heavily unionised environments, as well as broader employee relations and HR management experience developing and implementing policies, managing restructures, cultural change and continuous improvement projects.  

Tim began his career as a Graduate with Royal Mail, where he held a number of operational management roles before moving into employee relations and later to Regional HR Manager. Tim then progressed into HR Consultancy as a Senior HR Advisor, supporting a range of high-profile client accounts.

He later worked alongside Heads of Region and HR Business Partners within a leading UK retailer undergoing significant organisational change and restructuring, before taking on HR Business Partner roles with Network Rail and within the healthcare sector, prior to returning to consultancy. 

Tim’s diverse experience enables him to deliver commercially balanced, people-focused advice within fast-paced and challenging environments. Creative and forward-thinking, he is recognised for bringing innovative ideas and fresh perspectives to HR challenges, helping clients navigate change effectively while improving engagement and operational performance.

Isabelle came to the UK to study law and qualified in English and French Law. She then joined the St Helens Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) and worked as an employment law caseworker and tribunal advocate for a number of years. Whilst at the CAB, she completed her Legal Practice Course (LPC) before making the leap to HR Consultancy and is now a qualified solicitor.

As HR Consultant and Tribunal Advocate, Isabelle provides the type of pragmatic and commercially focused HR and legal advice that EML is renowned for and aims to supports clients in achieving their desired objectives in a way that manages the risks appropriately. Despite her strong legal background, Isabelle steers clear of obscure legal jargon and particularly enjoys the technical challenges that come with supporting clients in complex areas such as TUPE, minimum wage, holiday pay and employment status.

Isabelle is qualified in Interpersonal Mediation and can deliver accredited mediation services to our clients with a view to resolving conflict quickly and effectively. She is also a Trustee for Halton CAB.

Outside of work, Isabelle enjoys family time with her husband, 4 children and furry pets. She is also busy supporting her eldest in developing a judo competition career that she could not have! Isabelle enjoys a trip to the theatre and loves to travel. She is a keen skier and takes the family skiing to France every year.

Fun fact: Isabelle and her husband are an Indian/French family who both came to the UK to study in 2003 and never left!

Danny is a HR Consultant with many years’ experience across various sectors including retail, manufacturing, engineering and charities.  He has worked in both strategic and operational HR roles from HR Advisor to Head of HR and particularly enjoys working with SME’s who need support and guidance in the ever-changing and complicated landscape of employment law and employee relations.

After graduating from Liverpool John Moores University, Danny worked in a broad range of industries and completed his CIPD Degree followed by a Level 6 Employee Law certificate.  Progressing from HR Advisor he subsequently developed to HR Manager and Head of HR positions, managing a team of HR professionals.  He has driven significant change in many organisations and is commercially focused. He understands business needs and supports clients in delivering their goals.

EML work with Danny on an associate basis. Outside of work, Danny keeps himself more than busy with his love of live music, travel and discovering new places, Lego-building projects, family walks with his dog, Penny and embracing life as a proud grandparent. His other passion is scooters. Danny enjoys tinkering with two stroke engines and has been known to have more than one in the garage!

Fun fact: Danny is very proud to be involved in supporting local charities and is a trustee at NEO, Birkenhead which supports local communities to become self-sustaining and resilient.

Lisa joined the team in 2019 with a strong background in administration, marketing support and bid writing and experience across facilities management, contract catering and the public sector. She now applies this diverse skill set to HR and Employment Law, taking on new challenges while leading marketing initiatives and coordinating events to support EML’s ongoing growth.

From events and webinars to training and digital campaigns, Lisa enjoys developing fresh ideas and designs for our communications and campaigns. She also keeps our website packed with blog content and resources, manages our social media presence and maintains our client CRM system. Lisa has achieved a Diploma in Digital Marketing, further strengthening her contribution to EML’s evolving marketing strategy.

With her eldest daughter working away in London, Lisa spends most of her weekends supporting her teenage son who plays local grassroots football. She also loves the outdoors and enjoys walks with her husband and the family dog Kenobi (yes as in ‘Obi Wan’ for any Star Wars fans out there!). Lisa is also passionate about live music and enjoys going to concerts with family and friends.

Fun fact: Lisa has been a member of her local rounders team for 10 years, twice winning the Wigan back to sport league!

As our Company Accountant, Sandy keeps a close eye on our day-to-day bookkeeping. She’s responsible for all sales and purchase invoicing, credit control, maintaining purchase ledger and producing monthly accounting reports. 

Sandy is a qualified Accounting Technician with extensive experience in managing business accounting processes. Her career spans many of the sectors EML specialises in, with early roles in bookkeeping across aviation, manufacturing, retail, civil engineering, automotive and chartered surveying.

Sandy is married with two children and four rescue cats. When she’s not organising her family, she likes to volunteer at her local church coffee morning, where she enjoys making new friends.

Fun fact: Sandy is a DIY enthusiast and loves a renovation challenge