Trustees

I have worked across a range of organisations from event management companies to banks and charities. I have spent the last 25 years in the charity, wildlife, and leisure sectors in fundraising, marketing and communication roles. I am currently the Director of Development and Corporate Partnerships at the Royal Horticultural Society.

I live in Essex and spend much of my leisure time outdoors (I can often be spotted running, cycling or walking in the amazing landscapes of Essex throughout the year!). I am also a Trustee for Sense About Science and being Chair of the Essex Wildlife Trust, I aim to bring all my experience together to help protect the amazing wildlife that resides, or visits, the county!

I have been lucky enough to be a trustee at EWT since 2016, first as treasurer, and then as Chair.  I fully support the work and the ambition of Essex Wildlife Trust.  I am constantly grateful to the amazing team here, staff, volunteers and trustees, who give so much to protect the wildlife in this fantastic county, and I am hugely privileged to be given the opportunity to support such a wonderful charity.

I have a finance background, having worked directly with charities and small businesses for many years, currently working with organisations in the UK and another which supports under-represented groups in sub-Saharan Africa.  I am also on the Board of two other small charities which are involved in international development and grant funding.  I have extensive governance and finance experience, and will continue to use that experience to support the Trust.

I worry about the future of our wildlife.  I worry that our leaders disregard the importance of the environment.  I worry that our children will not have as many opportunities to be in nature.  But I am also inspired by the Wildlife Trusts, by Essex, by the leaders and volunteers and supporters of EWT.  I strongly believe that together we can make a difference. 

I am a chartered accountant who acts as a professional trustee for three defined benefit pension schemes and provides strategic and financial advice to owner-managed businesses. I was a Non-Executive Member of the Dover Harbour Board between 2005 and 2013 and continue to chair their Board of Pension Trustees. From 2006 to 2015 I was a Non-Executive Director of Basildon Hospital, and their Acting Chairman for the last 6 months of my term. I also have many years’ experience as finance director for a range of organisations including Stena Line (UK) Ltd and Prism Rail PLC.

I was first appointed a Trustee in 2016, but stepped down in 2018 when I expected to be moving out of the County. The move did not happen and I was delighted to re-join the Board of Trustees as Treasurer in 2020 since when I have continued to bring my financial, commercial and governance experience to the Trust, ensuring that it makes best use of all of its resources to promote the aims and deliver the objectives that we all share.

I have lived in Peldon, near Colchester since 2001 and play an active part in village life as Trustee and Management Committee Chairman of Peldon & Wigboroughs Community Hall, Treasurer of our Parish Church and Trustee of the Friends of the Church.

Since I was a boy I’ve loved nature, but now more than ever I realise that i  have to do everything i can to try and protect and grow nature. This means that on a personal basis, I’ve tried very hard to work towards net zero and biodiversity improvements in at home, in my business, in my volunteering, in my writing and in my charity donations.

Since joining Essex Wildlife Trust as a trustee I’ve helped Andrew Impey make Essex a better place for nature to thrive, encouraged improved, greener use of our funds and amplified our ability to tell people about it. 

I was born in Wiltshire and moved back to Essex as a child, where my family have lived for generations.  I am very proud to say that I love the Essex countryside and spend much of my spare time outside.  I have two children and three grandchildren and believe that the best education and foundation for learning comes from being in the wild green spaces of the county. 

My career has been within the Human Resources and Learning and Development profession, working in many different sectors but most recently the Technical industry .  Whilst data technology might be seen as far away from nature as you can possibly get, it plays a great part in understanding our natural world from research and monitoring giving us insight, that can be used to enable our cause.  Technology can also give access to many people so that they can see the natural world and habitats that they might otherwise not be able to access.

Throughout my career I have been responsible for welfare, engagement and sustainability, I hope that my skills will aid the Trust's strategy in these areas for staff, volunteers and members alike.   

I worry that future generations will not see our environment and green spaces in the same way as I have been able and I want to give my service to help towards a better environment for the people and the wildlife of Essex.

I have lived in Essex all my life and I am married to Gary with 2 daughters and 4 small grand children. More than ever, the natural habitat and wildlife in Essex mean so much to me, and it is wonderful to share these experiences with my family.

My career working in third sector organisations spans 30 years, spending nearly 20 years at the NSPCC. During that time I held a number of management roles, focused on leading teams to generate revenue in order to maintain and develop services for some of society’s most vulnerable members.

My last role at the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children – Head of Regional Appeals - included delivering the charity’s Full Stop campaign of the late 1990s across the South East of England. A groundbreaking campaign at the time, raising £250 million, more than any other UK fundraising appeal in history.

I was invited by Chickenshed Theatre Company to create their fundraising strategy and took up the role of Director of Fundraising & Marketing. During this time, I created and delivered new initiatives and products that produced a more sustainable and robust platform for growth.

I joined the international medical charity Mercy Ships in 2010 as UK Campaigns Director. I continued to play an active role in pioneering work making a difference to many lives across the globe.

In October 2019 I joined MIND as CEO of the Havering, Barking & Dagenham Service working to support people of all ages in their journey to recovery from mental health distress. As the leading mental health charity in these Boroughs, Havering MIND provides advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem, through service delivery, raising awareness and promoting understanding in the community.

I have undergone training to be a Court Child Witness Support and an Appropriate Adult supporting vulnerable young adults through the judicial system. I am also a volunteer ChildLine Counsellor and a Board Member of the Oral Health Foundation.

I am a commercial specialist with over 23 years of experience in the sales and sponsorship sector. I have worked with a broad range of clients across the culture, entertainment, environmental, local government, sports & member sectors on start-up ideas through to the execution and sale of large- scale sponsorship opportunities (£5,000 - £5,000,000).  I am also Chair of the National Parks Partnerships (an entity set up to explore partnership working for the 15 UK National Parks). In this capacity I have helped to create a sustainable commercial strategy, identified prospects and generated introductions, recruited talent and helped NPP to evolve their commercial structure. This includes the development of the award-winning Revere project, which delivers large-scale private investment into nature. Partners include Santander, Estee Lauder and BMW. I am also a consultant to Forestry England and co-founder of the Women in Sponsorship networking group (a group set up and designed to support the professional development of women working within the sector). In March 2023 I was awarded an inaugural ESA Fellowship in recognition of my outstanding contribution to the sponsorship sector.

A lifelong lover of nature and the outdoors, I am keen to bring my experiences to the Essex Wildlife Trust and feel I can add value in supporting the strategic goals of the trust specifically in relation to inspiring and acquiring new members, and supporting the trusts work in the emerging financial ecosystems of “green finance”. I hope to be an active and supportive member of the board.

I am a British-Malawian lawyer and I am currently engaged as Professor and Chair of African Legal Studies at University of Bayreuth in Germany. I have enjoyed a career in law that has spanned court practice, specialist consulting and academia. I bring to the Essex Wildlife Trust extensive legal and regulatory expertise in sustainability governance garnered through my training and practice as an environmental lawyer, alongside wide-ranging managerial experience through senior leadership positions in higher education and previous roles in risk management.

I believe that we owe it to our children and the generations after us to leave a strong legacy in how we value nature, particularly through our care of ecosystems and the natural resources that they nurture. As a resident of Essex, I am thrilled to be giving back to my community through my work with the Essex Wildlife Trust.

I’m a specialist in audience engagement with extensive experience of leading high-impact learning and visitor experience activities (e.g. interpretation, exhibitions, creative programming, masterplans, events), across museum, heritage, science and nature sectors, including The RHS, The Natural History Museum, The Victoria and Albert Museum and The National Trust.

In my current role, I direct creative programming, exhibitions, experiences and interpretation across all RHS Gardens, leading our talented Public Engagement team that deliver activities that bring gardens and gardening to life.  

As someone who has always had an interest in nature, it is a privilege to use my skills to shape how we engage our audiences at Essex Wildlife Trust, encouraging more people to care for, champion and protect the wildlife of Essex.