Secretariat

Ondine Tennant

Director of the Council

Ondine was appointed in October 2014.

Ondine is part of the senior management team of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and previously had responsibility for establishing the Scottish Civil Justice Council. In prior roles with the Scottish Government, Ondine has worked on major programmes to reform both the civil and criminal justice systems and on healthcare improvement. She gained a LLB (Hons) in Law and Politics from the University of Edinburgh in 2007, which involved a year’s study at the University of New South Wales in Sydney.

David Dickson

Principal Legal Officer to the Council

David was appointed in October 2017 as Principal Legal Officer to the Council.

David was seconded to the Council from the Scottish Government. In the past he has worked as a criminal defence solicitor, a procurator fiscal depute, and for the Law Society of Scotland. While at the Scottish Government he was involved with summary justice reform, court efficiency, and the greater use of technology in the justice system. He graduated from the University of Glasgow in 1989 with an honours degree in law.

Valerie MacGregor

Principal Policy Officer (Engagement)

Valerie was appointed in May 2022 as Principal Policy Officer (Engagement) to the Council.

Valerie was seconded to the Council in May 2022. She has previously worked as the Head of Judicial Communications and as the Council’s Communications Manager. Before joining the court service, she worked as a journalist for a national news agency. She graduated from the University of Edinburgh with a master’s degree in History and studied journalism at Napier University.

David Ross

Principal Policy Officer (Corporate)

David was appointed in May 2022 as Principal Policy Officer (Corporate) to the Council.

David was appointed in September 2018 as Senior Policy Officer to the Council. He was previously a policy officer with the Scottish Civil Justice Council. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a joint honours degree in English Literature and Scottish History before joining the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service in 2009, where he has worked in a variety of roles, including as a clerk of court in the Sheriffdom of South Strathclyde, Dumfries and Galloway.

Dr Nicole Vidal

Principal Research Officer

Nicole was appointed in October 2023 as Principal Research Officer to the Council.

Nicole joined the Council in October 2019 as the Senior Research Officer. Before assuming her current position, she worked as a Research Fellow and Lecturer, specialising in health and social policy, alongside engaging in research consultancy both nationally and internationally. She earned her doctorate in Global Health and Development from Queen Margaret University and holds master’s degrees in Social Policy and Anthropology from the University of Edinburgh.

Jane Rice

Senior Policy Officer

Jane was appointed in March 2025 as Senior Policy Officer to the Council.

Jane joined the Council in March 2025 on a secondment from the Scottish Prison Service. Prior to that she worked for Penal Reform International, an NGO working on human-rights based criminal justice reform. She also has experience in international development and humanitarian aid focused on the Middle East. Jane holds an MSc in Forced Migration from the University of Oxford and an MA in Anthropology and Social Research from the University of Aberdeen.

Caroline Bellinger

Communications Manager

Caroline was appointed in May 2022 as Communications Manager to the Council.

Caroline joined the Council from the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service, where she was Communications Manager. Before joining SCTS, she worked both in Scotland and Australia as a newspaper and magazine journalist, in TV and film production, and in communications for a number of third-sector organisations. She also worked in Japan for three years as an English teacher and travel writer. Caroline graduated from Charles Sturt University in New South Wales, Australia, with a journalism degree.

Lynda Tahri

Communications Manager

Lynda was appointed in January 2025 as Communications Manager to the Council.

Lynda joined the Council in January 2025, from the Home Builders Federation where she was Head of Communications. Her primary work was looking after communications for the skills partnership and working to attract and develop talent in the home building industry. Prior to this, Lynda has held communication roles within the higher education, insurance and third sectors. She also graduated from the University of Stirling with a master’s degree in Public Relations.

Nick Bibby

Communications Manager

Nick was appointed in January 2025 as Communications Manager to the Council.

Nick has a background in journalism and communications. Immediately prior to joining the Council, he held roles at the interface of academic research and public policy, including acting as director of the Scottish Policy & Research Exchange and his own company, Research and Impact Ltd. Before that, he supported media and policy engagement for the Centre on Constitutional Change and the School of Social and Political Science at the University of Edinburgh. He began his career as a journalist, with credits for the Scotsman, Herald, Holyrood Magazine and others. Outside of work, he chairs the Scottish International Education Trust.

Richard Smith

Business Manager

Richard was appointed in November 2020 as Business Manager to the Council.

Hannah Downey

Researcher

Hannah was appointed in April 2024 as a Researcher to the Council.