Adrian Tinniswood (Chair)
Adrian Tinniswood is an author, historian and educationalist.
From 1979 to 1983 he taught at the University of Nottingham, where he also carried out research into guide literature and historic buildings. He acted as a consultant on heritage education to the National Trust from 1983 to 1991, and was editor of the Trust’s educational publications between 1991 and 1996.
Adrian Tinniswood has published twelve books on various aspects of social and architectural history, including The Polite Tourist: A History of Country House Visiting (1998) and His Invention So Fertile (2001), a biography of Sir Christopher Wren. His most recent book is The Verneys - A True Story of Love, War and Madness in Seventeenth-Century England (2007). He has appeared on radio and television and lectures regularly on heritage-related matters in Britain and the USA. He was also Chair of the South West Joint Regional Committee of Awards for All 2004-2005.
He became a member of the Committee for the South West in April 2001.
Roger Goulding
Roger has nearly 20 years experience managing, developing and promoting the use and enjoyment of the natural and cultural environment in the public sector. He ran a parks and countryside service for more than 12 years, managing a wide range of wildlife, amenity and heritage sites, with responsibility for biodiversity, green infrastructure planning, countryside access and rural tourism initiatives. This service was the first in its region to develop a network of new Local Nature Reserves under the ‘Wildspace’ programme. He also oversaw 'Go for Green', a local initiative which provided financial and practical support to help communities and schools deliver more than 250 local projects to enjoy, celebrate and care for their local cultural and natural heritage.
Roger is now National Recreation and Navigation Policy and Process Advisor for the Environment Agency. As part of his role he has led the regional planning of water-related sport and recreation and supports the management of 1000km of waterways across England & Wales. He provides national guidance on water recreation issues and has been responsible for a number of national pilots, research studies and publications. In his time at the Agency Roger has assessed many of the South West’s parks as a judge for the Civic Trust’s Green Flag Award Scheme. Living on Dartmoor, Roger also sits on the National Park Local Access Forum.
Veryan Heal
Veryan has been employed as a heritage professional for 30 years, having grown up in the South West and chosen to live and work here for the last 20 years. Her work has covered all counties of the region, in the protection, management, investigation and interpretation of the historic environment and the dissemination of its value to the public, for their greater enjoyment and understanding. She has been employed by English Heritage, Devon County Council, Exmoor National Park Authority and the National Maritime Museum, Greenwich and in private practice. Veryan has worked as a curator and manager and as member and chair/convenor of multidisciplinary teams, in rural, urban, industrial, upland, wetland and maritime contexts. Much of this has involved community involvement and interaction with the public.
As Manager of Advice and Information in the Historic Environment Service of Cornwall County Council, Veryan’s current responsibilities include provision of advice to the planning process, agri-environment schemes, urban regeneration and World Heritage Site and involvement in steering externally funded and partnership projects. She also contributes to strategy and policy development at national, regional and local levels. Areas of work of particular interest are the integrated management of the historic environment with natural environment and recreation interests and the use of native and rare breeds in landscape conservation. She has served as an officer of various archaeological organisations.
Doug Hulyer (NHMF Trustee)
Doug Hulyer has been employed in wildlife conservation, environmental education and sustainable development for 30 years. He was a Council member of English Nature from 2002 and now sits on the Board of Natural England. He is the former Director of Conservation Programmes at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, was Project Director for the London Wetlands Centre and co-founder of the Real World Learning Campaign.
Sam Hunt
Sam is an Associate and Senior Consultant of Kingshurst Consulting with 33 years experience of working in museums and galleries. Until recently he was Chief Executive of the South West Museums, Libraries and Archives Council and previously Chief Executive of the South West Museums Council. He has had extensive experience of working with the Heritage Lottery Fund and other grant making bodies both as an assessor and advisor. He has a wide knowledge of the region and issues relating to its heritage. He has been a member of the National Trust Wessex Committee and Board Member of Culture South West and is currently a trustee of the National Maritime Museum Cornwall and the Dorset Archaeology and Natural History Society.
As Head of Museums at Bath, Sam headed up the Roman Baths Temple Precinct scheme and redevelopment of the Museum of Costume. He also managed the City Marketing Unit and was Secretary to the Bath archaeology Trust. Previous appointments include Senior Curator with Exeter Museums and Assistant Keeper of Art at Salford Art Gallery.
Tony Richardson
Tony Richardson began his professional career in environmental conservation when he joined the Wildfowl Trust at its Slimbridge headquarters in 1971. During the 32 years he was with the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, as the NGO is named today, he worked on reserves, led waterbird breeding programmes, managed the creation of a visitor focused wetlands reserve in South Wales and delivered a Conservation Centre project at Slimbridge in partnership with the Millennium Commission. When he left in November 2003, Tony had been the charity’s Chief Executive for six years. He moved to take up a position with the RSPB as Regional Director for South West England, where he is responsible for the delivery of the Society’s conservation work programme in the region. This includes the management of wild bird reserves on habitats as diverse as chalk grassland, woodland, lowland heath, wet grassland and estuaries, as well as species conservation projects, including chough, stone curlew and cirl bunting and site protection in the wider environment.
Having been brought up in Surrey, Tony has lived in Gloucestershire, South Wales and is now resident in Devon, with an Exeter office base. He has worked closely with grant making bodies over the years, has been involved in judging projects for HLF Heritage Heroes awards in the south west and for Biffaward nationally. He is the chair of the South West Climate Change Impact Partnership’s biodiversity sector group and a member of the Environment Agency’s Regional Environment Protection Advisory Committee.
David Sekers
Since 1973 David Sekers has worked in the heritage field, in particular with museums, where he led award winning museums in Stoke on Trent and then at Styal.
He was a founder of the Association of Independent Museums and Chairman from 1979 – 1981. He was a judge in the European Museum of the Year Awards from 1980 -1986. He is a fellow of the Museums Association and was awarded an OBE in 1986.
David joined the National Trust in 1989, as Regional Director of the Southern Region. He was then appointed the National Trust’s Director of the Regions, Policy and Planning with responsibilities for all regions, their performance and strategic direction.
After retiring from the National Trust in 2001, David became an independent heritage and museum consultant offering advice in the fields of management, governance and conservation, with a developing interest in emerging European nations. He is a trustee of Heritage Link, Parham House in Sussex and Dorset County Museum, and a member of the Museum’s Association’s Governing Bodies Forum and of the Conservation Committee of the Dorset Garden’s Trust.
He was specialist adviser to the DCMS Select Committee Inquiries on Heritage and Caring for Collections.