General Atomics

GFSL appoints Alistair Watters as CEO

GFSL has appointed Alistair Watters as CEO to lead support for the UK's prison service.



Image courtesy GFSL

Alistair brings over 20 years of experience leading at the highest levels in both the public sector and FTSE organisations. He brings a wealth of expertise and has a strong track record of delivering major business and technology transformations, in challenging and fast-changing environments.

Alistair is passionate about creating practical, sustainable solutions that work for everyone – stakeholders, employees and the people who rely on the services GFSL deliver.

Colin Allars, GFSL Board Chair, said: "We look forward to drawing on Alistair’s experience and leadership as GFSL navigates the opportunities and challenges ahead. We’re confident he’ll help us deliver on our commitments to the prison service and the teams that make it all happen.

Alistair’s career highlights include:

  • leading large-scale transformation programmes across technology and operations
  • designing and implementing Target Operating Models (TOM) for organisations with over 30,000 employees
  • building strong stakeholder relationships at all levels, including board engagement
  • leading cross-functional teams and delivering on international projects
  • overseeing CapEx budgets of up to £5.1 billion, driving efficiency and operational improvements

Speaking about his new role, Alistair said: "I’m thrilled to join GFSL at such an important time. The work we do supporting the prison service is critical and I’m looking forward to working alongside such a dedicated and passionate team.

"My focus is on making sure the Property Transformation Programme transition is as smooth as possible, for the prisons we serve, our employees and the new suppliers, while we continue to provide an excellent service to prisons. Together, we’ll ensure GFSL continues to deliver high-quality services and makes a real difference."
 

Related

UK Government opens scheme to slash manufacturers’ electricity bills
Jonathan Reynolds
UK Government opens scheme to slash manufacturers’ electricity bills
Applications for the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) are now open to over 10,000 manufacturing businesses.
Aerospace Defence

2 Oct 2026

UK Government proposes airline fee reforms and tougher measures on disruptive passengers
Aircraft landing at Heathrow Airport
UK Government proposes airline fee reforms and tougher measures on disruptive passengers
New aviation proposals would end charges for seating young children with accompanying adults, restrict fees for simple booking errors and strengthen airline cooperation on repeat disruptive passengers.
Aerospace

2 Oct 2026

Doncaster Sheffield Airport takes another step towards reopening with new firefighting fleet
Doncaster Sheffield Airport fire appliance
Doncaster Sheffield Airport takes another step towards reopening with new firefighting fleet
Doncaster Sheffield Airport has ordered three specialist aviation firefighting vehicles as preparations continue for its planned reopening.
Royal Navy tests autonomous systems against threats to critical underwater infrastructure
Exercise Repmus 2026 in Portugal
Royal Navy tests autonomous systems against threats to critical underwater infrastructure
The Royal Navy used NATO's REPMUS exercise in Portugal to evaluate autonomous vessels, underwater gliders and other emerging capabilities designed to detect underwater threats and protect critical infrastructure.
Defence

2 Oct 2026

UK targets 30% rise in RAF A400M availability under £190m Airbus deal
Pictured here is an Royal Air Force A400M Atlas flying thought the machloop in Wales on the 21st November 2024.
UK targets 30% rise in RAF A400M availability under £190m Airbus deal
A £190m Airbus support deal will target a 30% increase in RAF A400M availability while sustaining more than 350 UK jobs through April 2029.
Defence

2 Oct 2026

UK Government opens scheme to slash manufacturers’ electricity bills
Jonathan Reynolds
UK Government opens scheme to slash manufacturers’ electricity bills
Applications for the British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) are now open to over 10,000 manufacturing businesses.
Aerospace Defence

2 Oct 2026

SatVu’s HotSat-3 launches on SpaceX mission to double thermal satellite capacity
SAtVu HotSat
SatVu’s HotSat-3 launches on SpaceX mission to double thermal satellite capacity
SatVu has launched HotSat-3 aboard SpaceX’s Transporter-18 rideshare mission, adding capacity for high-resolution thermal intelligence from space.
Member News Space

2 Oct 2026

Orbex’s UK manufacturing assets and IP acquired by Omnidea
Omnidea engineering testing platform
Orbex’s UK manufacturing assets and IP acquired by Omnidea
Portugal's Omnidea has purchased the manufacturing assets and intellectual property (IP) of British rocket manufacturer Orbex UK, which ceased operations in February this year and went into administration.
Member News Space

2 Oct 2026

Filtronic wins SpaceX contract to support Starlink network
ground station
Filtronic wins SpaceX contract to support Starlink network
Sedgefield headquartered Filtronic has won a $68.1 million (£51.52m) order from SpaceX to support its Starlink network, highlighting the growing global demand for UK-developed space technology.
Member News Space

1 Oct 2026

Cohort appoints Richard Mills as Group Strategy Director
Richard Mills
Cohort appoints Richard Mills as Group Strategy Director
Former Boeing executive Richard Mills will lead the growth strategy of Cohort and its seven subsidiaries which specialise in defence and security technology across the UK, Germany, Portugal and Australia.
BAE Systems proves complete counter-drone kill chain in Scotland trials
Container and Sensor
BAE Systems proves complete counter-drone kill chain in Scotland trials
BAE Systems has demonstrated its complete BATS counter-drone chain in Scotland, integrating sensors, electronic warfare and a gun system.
Security

1 Oct 2026

Doncaster Sheffield Airport takes another step towards reopening with new firefighting fleet
Doncaster Sheffield Airport fire appliance
Doncaster Sheffield Airport takes another step towards reopening with new firefighting fleet
Doncaster Sheffield Airport has ordered three specialist aviation firefighting vehicles as preparations continue for its planned reopening.