The Bar Standards Board has appointed a new director with Vanessa Davies to take on the role in December.

Davies will replace Mandie Lavin in the top position at the Bar regulator after two years in the role for Lavin. Davies's appointment is for an unfixed term.

Davies, a non-practising barrister, will join following a spell as director of operations at legal aid charity Refugee and Migrant Justice, where she was responsible for professional training, standards and compliance for accredited paralegals and caseworkers, as well as solicitors and barristers.

She began her career as an academic linguist after completing a doctoral fellowship in French at King's College London. She then spent around a decade at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, first as director of the Diplomatic Service Language Centre and then as group director.

Davies said: "There are difficult times ahead as the profession responds to two major challenges – the spending cuts and the new ways of working made possible by the Legal Services Act 2007.

"I look forward to working with my staff and the wide range of organisations and individuals across and beyond the profession to support users of legal services and barristers alike."

Bar Standards Board chairman Baroness Ruth Deech added: "With her legal background, wealth of experience and consumer focus, I am sure that she will tackle the demands of legal regulation head-on. Mandie has served the Bar magnificently and has ensured that the BSB is in the best position to deal with the ever-changing legal landscape."

The Bar Standards Board is responsible for regulating barristers called to the Bar in England and Wales.