BBOWT - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Architect
- Trustee
- Trustee Andrew Bennellick
Drew is a chartered landscape architect with experience of private and public practice. For nine years he worked for English Heritage as deputy director for London, and for the last 12 years he has worked for The National Lottery Heritage Fund - the largest investor in nature outside central Government - as head of land and nature policy. He leads the Fund's investment approach to landscapes, nature, the marine environment and environmental sustainability. He is also the development director for the Future Parks Accelerator, a joint venture with the National Trust focused on improving urban green space for all. Drew lives in the Chilterns and is a keen walker and gardener.
Job Titles:
- Head of Trusts and Grants
Anna joined BBOWT in February 2021 to manage and grow trust and grant income, funding new and existing projects which enable the Trust to achieve its overall strategic aims.
Prior to BBOWT, Anna has worked with a number of small and medium charities, helping them develop successful trust and grant programmes. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising, serving as an active Committee Member and Secretary for their Chilterns group. She also Co-Chairs their Trust Network, providing peer to peer support to a number of trust fundraisers within the Chilterns.
Anna is looking forward to educating others on the importance of protecting the landscape and wildlife around us.
Becky joined BBOWT in 2019 and heads up the Human Resources team and leads the HR strategic agenda across the three counties. Becky brings over 15 years' experience working across a range of businesses in the hospitality and retail industries and is a chartered member of the CIPD. Understanding that our employees and volunteers are our biggest and most valuable asset, Becky's role includes business partnering all the functions across the Trust ensuring we have robust and highly proficient people plans in place to deliver sustainable results aligned to the BBOWT strategic plan.
Becky has a keen interest in wildlife and is passionate about inspiring others to understand its value and natural benefits to health.
Cait joined BBOWT in April 2019 leads BBOWT's strategic financial planning - working to ensure that the Trust has a sound financial base to secure the future of its work for nature across the three counties for many generations to come. She also oversees our visitors centres, IT systems, properties and governance function. She is a qualified accountant with a broad range of experience from across the public and third sector. Having worked in humanitarian aid, criminal justice and human rights organisations previously she brings with her a strong sense of justice and a passion for treating the world we live in and those we share it with well. Cait has (at least one) hedgehog that lives in her garden.
Job Titles:
- Head of Landscape Recovery
Charlotte joined BBOWT in March 2022 to manage the Landscape Recovery team, working to expand nature recovery work in the wider landscape of the three counties. Connecting our wider countryside in a network of positively managed land is critical to achieving BBOWT's vision and addressing climate issues and biodiversity loss.
Prior to BBOWT, Charlotte has over 8 years' experience in marine environmental consultancy, delivering monitoring projects, and more recently worked for local government leading on development plans for the Country Parks Service. Charlotte is looking forward to working on existing landscape scale projects such as the Living Landscapes, developing new partnerships and delivering conservation projects to help put nature into recovery.
Debbie joined BBOWT in 2002 when she established the reserves monitoring programme, which collects rigorous ecological data to help inform nature reserve management decisions. Debbie now heads up the Ecology Team, carrying out surveying and providing advice both on reserves and in the wider countryside. Debbie has also overseen the delivery of an innovative wider landscaping monitoring scheme in our West Berkshire Living Landscape and has advised numerous other Wildlife Trusts in how to assess their own biodiversity.
When Debbie is not at work she likes to eat cake and go cycling.
Estelle joined BBOWT as Chief Executive in January 2014 after 16 years working in senior executive roles with other Wildlife Trusts. Working closely with the Board of Trustees and Directors, Estelle is responsible for the strategic leadership and direction of the Trust to deliver a wilder Berks, Bucks & Oxon that both restores nature at a significant scale and reconnects people to nature. Estelle believes that a healthy wildlife-rich natural world is valuable in its own right and is also the foundation of our wellbeing and prosperity; we depend on it and it depends on us. Estelle is a keen ornithologist, with a lifelong passion for wildlife. To contact Estelle, please email info@bbowt.org.uk
Frances has Master's degree in microbiology and moved into marketing where she worked in several industries. She was Global Marketing Director at the Financial Times and held senior roles in other organisations, most recently as Director of Audiences at the British Library where she was responsible for fundraising, communications and commercial revenues. Frances is passionate about wildlife conservation and animal welfare, has been a member of BBOWT for more than ten years and joined the board in 2015. She is a keen photographer and enjoys walking in the Chilterns and surrounding countryside.
Garth Clark has worked on estates in Scotland, the Cotswolds, Somerset and Kent, building on his formative years in practical agriculture. His most recent appointment was Waddesdon Estate in Buckinghamshire, supporting the Rothschild family to enhance and nurture the aesthetics and conservational value of the historic estate.
With his farming background and organic experience, Garth has an unique conservation perspective by combining commercial farming and land management, with a strong environmental respect and appreciation of natural capital. Monitoring soil health is always Garth's starting point from which to assess and regenerate farming systems and the land, aiming to stimulate the soil's fertility and holistic potential to support healthy plants, healthy animals and healthy humans, as well as encourage less flooding, cleaner water and cleaner air.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Chairman of the Board of Trustees
After periods in the public and commercial sectors, the majority of George's career has been in the voluntary sector. He was head of marketing and communications at the British Red Cross before 10 years as chief executive at the Motor Neurone Disease Association. For the past 15 years he has been consulting on leadership, governance and strategy, most of his clients being charities and other civil society organisations. He has been a trustee of several organisations and is currently chair of Rewilding Britain.
Job Titles:
- Chartered Accountant
- Honorary Treasurer
- Trustee
Graeme trained as a Chartered Accountant and worked for 15 years in the energy industry at Powergen/E.ON with his final role being Finance Director of E.ON's electricity grid business. He was then the Chief Financial Officer at HS1 Limited for six years. Since 2017, Graeme has held several portfolio roles, and is Trustee of a large pension fund and of a charitable trust providing education and medical care in Zimbabwe.
Job Titles:
- Mechanical Engineer
- Trustee
Greg trained as a Mechanical Engineer and subsequently worked for several automotive design consultancies in Europe, the US, and Australia. He then worked with medical device manufacturer Owen Mumford and helped establish their Environmental Steering Group, partnering on initiatives with the Low Carbon Hub and the Wychwood Project. He was a founding member of Friends of Aston's Eyot, managing a 30 acre mixed habitat island on the Thames in Oxford as a nature reserve, and served on their committee from 2010 to 2018. Greg joined the BBOWT Board in 2019, is a practitioner member of IEMA and occasionally writes for their in-house magazine. He now combines a number of interests and enjoys immersing himself in the immediacy and wonder of the natural world.
Job Titles:
- Fundraising, Communications
Karen joined BBOWT in January 2021. She leads fundraising, marketing, membership and communications strategy across the three counties, working to ensure delivery of the Trust's overall strategic aims through positive engagement, sustainable income generation and innovative communications.
Prior to BBOWT Karen worked for many years in educational fundraising, marketing and communications, and volunteers as a trustee of an educational charity. She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.
Karen loves getting out into nature, and enjoys communicating its benefits to our physical and mental health.
Laura joined the Trust in 2016 following 12 years of fundraising, mainly in the heritage and environment sector. As a member of the Institute of Fundraising and having studied through the The Institute of Sustainable Philanthropy in the UK, Laura heads up BBOWT's Philanthropy Department. The department manages the high-level relationships which help drive the delivery of BBOWT's Strategic Plan, as well as harnessing vital every day income for the Trust from these supporters. Another important role of her Team is to work closely with individuals and families as they plan their legacy wishes for the Trust, including in-memorial giving.
Job Titles:
- Head of Communications and Media
Lis joined BBOWT in March 2021 to head up the communications team, following five years working with conservation charities at regional, national and international levels. With a strong background in newspaper and broadcast media, Lis is keen to use her skills to inspire others to care for the wonderful wildlife in our three counties. The communications team plays a key role in the Trust - informing, engaging and empowering people to join us in taking action to save nature. A life-long nature lover, Lis is very proud to be working for BBOWT and feels lucky to be doing a job she enjoys, in a field she feels so passionately about.
Job Titles:
- Community Engagement Director
Liz started her current role in 2019. She leads the people engagement team, which includes our environmental education and community wildlife teams who use a wide range of activities and projects to inspire people about wildlife and help them to recognise the value of nature. Liz has a keen interest in the impact that nature has on people, particularly the positive impact on our health and well-being. Liz joined the Trust in 2015 to manage the Nature Discovery Centre in Newbury, one of our flagship visitor centres. Before this, she worked in the public and charity sectors for 10 years, inspiring people about their local green space in countryside and urban environments.
Mark originally studied Natural Sciences (Zoology) at Cambridge and has a lifelong passion for ecology, evolution and the environment. For the past 20 years, he has practised as a barrister with a focus on high technology multijurisdictional patent litigation, in particular in the pharmaceutical, biopharmaceutical and telecoms spheres. He took silk in 1999. He is a Board Member of the ENT UK Foundation and loves running, travel (with a limited carbon footprint), good food and music.
Job Titles:
- Head of Planning, Policy and Advocacy
Matthew joined BBOWT in 2019 after working in environmental law, planning and policy for a decade. He leads on the Trust's advocacy with MPs, councillors and other influential decision makers. He also heads up the Trust's planning and development work, seeking to ensure that any development that takes place benefits wildlife. As a qualified solicitor, he also manages BBOWT's strategic legal actions, such as the case brought against the Oxford to Cambridge Expressway.
Job Titles:
- Trustee
- Trustee Miles Evans
Miles has degrees in political science from both St Andrews and Reading universities. He spent five years working in Parliament as chief of staff for Environment Minister Richard Benyon and the late Secretary of State for Wales, Dame Cheryl Gillan. He was elected as a councillor in 2015, later becoming deputy leader of Newbury Town Council until 2019. Miles spent seven years leading communications and government relations for the UK's largest water company, Thames Water, as part of the business's senior leadership team. He currently heads public affairs for Openreach, the UK's largest digital infrastructure company. He enjoys exploring BBOWT nature reserves in his free time.
Natalie has a background in philosophy, community engagement and the creative arts. In 2011 she decided that her mission was to help people and nature thrive by rewilding urban communities. She trained as a Forest School leader and set up the award-winning social enterprise Nature Nurture CIC, based in Reading. She has devised numerous programmes to connect people with nature, often employing the creative arts and technology as well as more traditional environmental education approaches. Natalie is also a consultant ‘Nature Lead' for Dr. William Bird's company Intelligent Health, and helps local authorities and conservation groups across the country co-design health and wellbeing interventions to engage their communities with the parks, woodlands and waterways on their doorsteps.
Her work has taken her to Belize, Ghana, Kenya and Palestine. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts. She became a member of BBOWT in 2014 and a trustee in 2019.
Job Titles:
- Conservation Strategy Director
Prue leads BBOWT's conservation efforts in the wider countryside across the three counties. This focuses on work beyond our BBOWT nature reserves, undertaking activities such as monitoring and managing our Living Landscapes and working with planners, developers and private landowners to give wildlife a voice, and inspire people to take action for wildlife. With a background in conservation science, Prue brings her passion for delivering practical conservation approaches underpinned by evidence, to strategically address challenges facing wildlife in our three counties.
Job Titles:
- Head of Membership and Events
Rachel joined BBOWT in January 2022 to lead the membership and events teams. Membership income is critical to the ongoing success of BBOWT, and so reaching out to and engaging new and diverse audiences as well as ensuring the membership journey is a positive one are key priorities.
Prior to BBOWT, Rachel has over 15 years' experience within the charity sector, working in supporter development for a national heart charity and more recently in a senior role within a dedicated not-for-profit agency working across a number of charitable causes including homelessness, environmental, international development and health.
A keen walker and runner, Rachel loves being outdoors in nature. She is incredibly honoured to be part of BBOWT and to help the Trust put nature into recovery.
Rachel joined the Trust in 2008 following 8 years in the conservation sector. She heads up the small Finance Team, dealing with the day to day management of the Trust's finances and ensuring compliance with statutory reporting requirements. She's a bit bird obsessed and much prefers to talk bird watching with colleagues rather than numbers!
Steve is world-renowned adventurer, naturalist, writer and television presenter. You may have seen him on BBC TV shows such as Big Blue Live, Deadly 60, and Lost Land of the Volcano. In 2010 he became President of the Berks, Bucks & Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) because of his passion for local wildlife, and enthusiasm for more children to be intrigued and inspired by nature. Watch Steve introduce you to BBOWT.
Steve joined BBOWT in June 2021 and leads on strategic land management across the three counties through BBOWT's reserves and ecology teams. This work focuses on managing the Trust's reserves to a high standard for nature as well as exploring strategic opportunities to enable the Estate to become ‘bigger, better and more joined up' across the landscape. Steve has a background in practical conservation land management including woodland management, conservation grazing, farming and has managed a large scale rewilding project for ten years. He has worked for over 15 years in the charitable environmental conservation sector. Steve has a strong commitment to improving the UK's habitats and biodiversity with a particular interest in restoring ecological systems and processes.
Tim is a conservation scientist with a lifelong interest in wildlife. He studied zoology at university and has been involved in a range of ecological research over the past 20 years: from counting whales and dolphins in the Irish Sea to surveying fish populations in West African rivers. He is an advocate of citizen science, and volunteers with the River Chess Association to monitor the health of his local chalk streams.
Tim completed his PhD in conservation science in 2014 and worked for several years as a consultant, providing advice on conservation and fisheries management to the UK government, the European Commission and the World Bank. He currently works as a technical specialist at the Marine Stewardship Council, a charity that recognises and rewards sustainable fishing.
Tim lives in the Chilterns with his family.
Zoe Hancock is currently the Principal Bursar of St John's College, Oxford. In this role, she has responsibility for non-academic aspects of the College, including its land holdings. After reading History at Oxford University she trained as a Chartered Accountant and has worked at PwC, Walkers Crisps, the British Museum, and as a Principal and Chief Executive of Oaklands College, a further education college in Hertfordshire. She was Chair of WENTA for four years, a not-for-profit social enterprise which supports business start-ups.