John Watson (Chair)
John Watson, 65, lives in Kirk Deighton near Wetherby, Leeds. In addition to his work as Regional Chairman for Yorkshire and Humber, he is a County Councillor in North Yorkshire where he holds executive responsibility for the County’s schools.
He is also Chairman of Partnership Investment Finance Ltd and the Regional Chairman of Young Enterprise.
Between 1996 and 2004, he was a Director of the Yorkshire Building Society, becoming the Society’s Vice Chairman in 2000. He has also been President of the Bradford Chamber of Commerce, Chairman of Bradford Business Link, and Chief Executive of Bradford City Challenge. In 1998 he was awarded an OBE for services to urban regeneration in Bradford.
Between 1979 and 1987 he was the MP for Skipton and Ripon, but most of his career has been spent in the printing and plastics industries. He qualified as a Solicitor in 1968.
John Hamshere
John Hamshere is Chief Executive of Sheffield Industrial Museums Trust. He is a history graduate, has a masters degree in Industrial Archaeology and is an Associate Member of the Museums Association. He began his career in 1985 at the Museum of Science and Engineering in Newcastle with curatorial responsibility for mining and marine engineering. In 1989 John became the first Museums Officer for Allerdale Borough Council in Cumbria building up the Museums and Heritage Service to nine varied sites and in 1994 the education service that he established won the North West Museum of the Year Award for Education.
In 1994 he was appointed as the first Executive Director of Kelham Island Museum Ltd, a charitable trust set up to rescue Sheffield’s industrial museum from closure. The success of the Trust led to its expansion in 1998 to form Sheffield Industrial Museums Trust (SIMT) with the addition of Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet, which had been closed by the City Council in 1997. SIMT has renewed the sites in its care with investment from many sources.
He represents SIMT in the YoMMS group (Yorkshire Medium sized Museums Services), is Chairman of the Upper Don Walk Trust (aiming to build a walk along the River Don in Sheffield), served on the Board of MLA Yorkshire (Museums, Libraries and Archives Council) 2005 to 2007 and is a member if the South Yorkshire Advisory Board of Open Industry, an initiative of the Industrial Trust to encourage young people to seek a career in the manufacturing industry.
Louise Hampson
Louise is originally from London, but moved to North Yorkshire in 1995. An archivist by training, working at Northants then Warwickshire County Record Offices, Louise has worked for the Dean and Chapter of York since 1995. Initially taking up the role of Archivist, she is now a member of the senior management team, with overall responsibility for all the historic collections the Minster holds, including the registered museum, as well as projects to develop outreach and education. In the 1990s she lectured on and administered the HND course in Heritage Management for Bishop Burton College.
She was a Board member of Yorkshire MLAC from its inception until March 2007 and has been a member of the Yorkshire Cultural Consortium, Chair of the Yorkshire Archives Council and Secretary of the Standing Conference on Archives and Museums. Currently undertaking a museums NVQ in Collections Management and AMA Registration, she is also the Dean and Chapter’s staff member in the Christianity and Culture project, which provides digital resources on the Christian background to western culture.
David Kennedy
David was originally a social worker but then worked in a number of posts in Bradford Council before spending the last year of his career, in 2006, as Interim Chief Executive.
In his role as Assistant Chief Executive for Regeneration one of the directorates for which he had responsibility was Arts, Heritage and Leisure and he has always had an interest in cultural industries and their relationship to regeneration.
Before he became a social worker, he worked in the textile industry and then as a climbing instructor in both Africa and America and while he is no longer up to climbing he continues to enjoy hill walking.
Ros Taylor
Ros Taylor trained as a town planner and worked in strategic planning in two London boroughs before marrying and, moving to Selby, where she was responsible for producing local plans, defining, and managing conservation areas, and managing the Selby Coalfield application.
From the early 1980s, and once her children had started school, Ros worked for in the voluntary sector, starting with a rural community council which covered the Humber area and operating in a variety of roles, including advising Village Halls, supporting rural communities and developing a sub-regional forum for organisations with a health and social welfare remit.
During the 1990s, she set up the Boothferry Council for Voluntary Service (CVS), and developed a strong voluntary and community sector in a disadvantaged town and its hinterland. As part of that work she led the £1.2m regeneration of a semi-derelict Victorian School developing a vibrant social enterprise, providing both offices and a wide range of community facilities. This work brought Ros the award of an MBE in 2000. The project was just part of the CVS’s major contribution to the social and economic regeneration of the town. She continues to chair the Board of Trustees of ‘The Courtyard’ as it develops to meet the needs of the community.
Between 1999 and September 2007, Ros was the Chairman of Humber Mental Health Teaching NHS Trust and its predecessor organisations, forming a three start trust, which provides mental health, learning disability and addiction services. Currently she is developing a Third Sector Consultancy.
Christopher Woodward
Christopher Woodward took up a new role as Director of the Museum of Garden History in September 2006. He was previously Director of the Holburne Museum of Art in Bath, and has worked as Assistant Curator at Sir John Soane’s Museum. He is author of the book In Ruins.
Kenneth Wyatt
Ken Wyatt was born in Yorkshire and has lived in the region most of his life. Professionally, he has worked in the ambulance service for more than 25 years as an operational paramedic, more recently in control and communications.
He has served as an elected member of Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council since 1985, during recent times as a member of the council’s executive (cabinet). During his council service Ken has held a variety of portfolios including sustainability issues, performance/Best Value and procurement. Currently he is the member lead on Sustainability and Innovation, including e-government, communications, marketing, rural issues, customer services and sustainable development.
In the criminal justice service Ken is a magistrate on the Rotherham Bench, is Chair of the Humber and South Yorkshire Courts Board, member of the South Yorkshire Probation Board and Chair of the Probation Audit Committee.
With regard to the heritage field Ken is the published author of a number of books, articles and newspaper articles on local history and heritage matters. He has co-produces a series of films on Yorkshire history and has contributed to television and radio productions on heritage subjects.
Internationally Ken has participated in delegations to Israel, one on behalf of the British Council; he has been guest speaker at conferences in Japan which were televised. He is a regular speaker much closer to home on heritage subjects visiting schools, local societies, Rotary Clubs etc.
Ken has extensive experience in event management, organisation and planning, everything from local history fairs to boxing shows, beer festivals to a fun day for children with autism. He has been involved in community development and regeneration for many years. Previous appointments have included board member Dearne Valley City Challenge, Groundwork Dearne Valley, South Yorkshire Forest Partnership, Local Government Association Rural Commission, Chair of Waste Recycling Environmental Ltd. Yorkshire Panel and Chair of Governors Swinton Comprehensive School.