The team at SSAFA Grampian is dedicated to helping veterans, service personnel, and their families, in the local community. Our commitment is to provide support with experienced, non-judgemental and friendly advice, as well as a variety of practical services that cover a range of emotional, practical and financial issues. We are proud to say that we help our Armed Forces family whenever they need us, for as long as they need us. Here at SSAFA Grampian, we have a variety of different personalities that together make our team so special.
Sandy Manson
Branch President
Sandy qualified as a Chartered Accountant and spent his career working in practice with Arthur Andersen and then 32 years helping to build Johnston Carmichael into what is today, Scotland’s largest independent accounting firm.
Following his retirement from Johnston Carmichael in 2022 he was appointed to the Boards of three family businesses as a Non-Executive Director including Gordon & MacPhail and W A Baxter & Sons (Holdings) Limited.
He was appointed by Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II as Lord-Lieutenant of Aberdeenshire in April 2020.
He is also a Trustee of The King’s Foundation, The Baxter Family Charitable Trust, The North Highland Initiative and President of SSAFA (Grampian Branch). Sandy sits on the Advisory Board of the University of Stirling where he is an Honorary Professor. He is also a former President of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland, Chair of Salvesen Mindroom, Director of The Honourable Company of Edinburgh Golfers (Muirfield), Honorary Dutch Consul for the North of Scotland and Chair of the Development Trust for the University of Aberdeen
Lottie Bethell
Branch Treasurer
Lottie first started volunteering with SSAFA 6 years ago as the Moray, Nairn and Banffshire branch Treasurer; she has come full circle and is the Volunteer Branch Treasurer again for the Grampian Branch.
Lottie’s working life has always been connected to the Armed Forces community; her first ‘proper’ job was as an MOD Civil Servant working at RAF Cranwell, before she served in the RAF, mostly at RAF Lossiemouth, and then joined the Scottish Regional Office team at SSAFA. She is currently one of the two Regional Casework Managers. Lottie’s husband has also served as an RAF regular and is currently a full-time reservist, so she has experience of the military, from several different angles.
Lottie is passionate about supporting the Armed Forces community, and ensuring they get the help that they need from SSAFA, as she acknowledges that her own service and transition back into civilian life was straightforward and relatively easy.
Lottie lives in Lossiemouth, and when she is not working, you will find her rowing and fundraising for the community based Lossiemouth Coastal Rowing Club and playing the clarinet in the RAF Lossiemouth Voluntary Band, which allows her to still put on an RAF uniform every now and then!
Kirsty Brunton
Casework Manager
Kirsty is both Regional Casework Coordinator within the Scottish Regional Office and Casework Manager for Grampian. She joined SSAFA due to her love of helping others and her own experience undertaking various voluntary roles. With 30 years of service Kirsty recognizes how much effort volunteers put in and believes that if they receive support, it can help them fully enjoy their role and fulfil their potential. She enjoys the varied work within the Regional Office supporting volunteers and clients with no two days ever the same. Before joining SSAFA, Kirsty worked with the RNLI supporting volunteers in delivering water safety talks and HMRC catching tobacco smugglers! Outside of work, she enjoys all things water based, having previously volunteered as a sailing instructor and currently as a swimming coach.
Neil Harrison
Visitor
Neil, born in Lancashire in 1965 was brought up in Yorkshire where he lived until joining the Airforce and moving to Scotland. He served almost 12 years in the Royal Air Force as Flight Systems then Flight Simulator Technician. Neil is married with 2 children in their 20’s and 2 grandchildren with another on the way. After the RAF he worked in IT management for BAE Systems, then NHS Grampian and finally taking early retirement due to ill health. He enjoys keeping fit mostly hill walking or gym running, travel, reading/listening to audio books, music, films and is currently trying to learn Spanish!
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