People
James Parry, Chairman
James Parry is a writer on wildlife, heritage and art. After training as a conservation officer with English Heritage, he undertook a Masters in Architecture, specialising in historic landscapes. He then worked as a consultant on a range of heritage and wildlife related projects, both in the UK and overseas, for a variety of clients including the National Trust, London Centre for Arab Studies and New Holland Publishers. He has written several books on natural history and on Middle Eastern heritage, as well as many articles for magazines, journals and national newspapers. He has lived in Breckland since 1996 and was instrumental in setting up the Breckland Society, of which he is also chairman. He is pictured here, with cut reeds, at Martham.
Professor Tim O’Riordan, President
Professor O’Riordan is Emeritus Professor of Environmental Sciences at the University of East Anglia. He is a Deputy Lieutenant of the County, Sheriff of Norwich (2009-10) and a Fellow of the British Academy. He has a deep understanding of climate change issues and is an active promoter of sustainable rural communities, hosting a conference in 2009 to specifically look at a low carbon future for our towns and villages. As president of CPRE Norfolk, he is our figurehead, promoting the charity wherever possible and raising awareness of our work. He is pictured here at Happisburgh, studying coastal erosion on the North Norfolk coast.
Ian Shepherd, Planning Policy Co-ordinator
Ian is CPRE Norfolk’s planning supremo and his ability to get to the nub of the planning issues that threaten the Norfolk countryside is unparalleled. After a career in food research and development, he joined CPRE almost 20 years ago after a local concern over the Letheringsett bypass. Since then, he has been a key player with CPRE at a district, county, regional and national level and served for 5 years on CPRE’s National Policy Committee. His contribution to the charity was recognised in 2007 when he was presented with the CPRE Countryside medal, the charity’s top accolade. He is pictured here (centre) in Sheringham, celebrating with local campaigners, after an edge of town supermarket application was refused planning permission.
John Davies, Honorary Treasurer
John is a qualified Chartered Land Agent and Chartered Surveyor. He has spent time in private practice in Norfolk and Wales, and as a Resident Land Agent for an owner of three estates in Norfolk and Yorkshire. He has held a number of non-executive directorships and was for three years Chairman of JSR Farms Ltd. John joined CPRE Norfolk in 2008 as Honorary Treasurer, taking overall responsibility for the charity’s accounts and budgeting. He works closely with our Finance and Administration Officer to ensure prudent use of our membership subscriptions, personal donations and corporate sponsorship.
James Frost, Director
After many years in the voluntary sector with the Prince’s Trust and Voluntary Norfolk, James took the role of Director with CPRE Norfolk in 2003. He has overseen a major change in the charity’s profile and kickstarted major new initatives such as the ‘Green Buildings in Norfolk - Open Days’ event in 2007 and the ‘Clean Up Norfolk’ week in 2009. Along with the Executive Committee, he sets the strategic direction of the charity and is responsible for fundraising, staff supervision, volunteer recruitment, media work and our local campaigning activities. He was photographed here for the Times Newspaper during a site visit of the proposed new eco-town in Rackheath.
Katy Jones, Membership and Events Manager
Katy manages CPRE Norfolk’s varied calendar of events, including our Green Building Open Days and the CPRE Norfolk Awards. She also deals with matters relating to membership and writes and edits our newsletter Norfolk Voice. Katy was born in Norfolk and originally trained as a Chartered Surveyor in London, so in addition to her 12 years experience in PR and Marketing, she also has a knowledge and understanding of wider land management issues.
Dinah Berry, Finance and Administration Officer
Dinah makes sure the CPRE Norfolk office runs smoothly on a day to day basis, handling all financial and office administration matters. She solves the day to day problems that running a small charity brings, regularly doing battle over the phone with banks, insurers and the Inland Revenue. Dinah joined CPRE Norfolk from Norfolk Education and Action for Development (NEAD), where she was responsible for the running the World Shop on Exchange Street.
Martin Walton, Chairman of Awards Judging Panel
Martin Walton has been the Chairman of the CPRE Norfolk Awards Judging Panel for over 20 years and a Trustee of CPRE Norfolk for a similar time. With the fellow members of our judging panel he travels the length and breadth of the county each year studying building, landscape and education projects that have submitted applications for CPRE Norfolk Awards. He is also an artist, designer and rural campaigner and in the 1990s was named by Country Life magazine as one of ‘the heroes of the countryside’. He has also been awarded the CPRE Countryside Medal and the Marsh Christian Trust Award for excellence in volunteering. He is pictured here at Catton Park, winner of a CPRE Norfolk Award in 2008.
Paul Wiley, Litter Campaign Co-ordinator
Paul has worked in the advertising and marketing business throughout his adult life. He currently runs a consultancy service for airlines advising them on revenue generation opportunities from inflight media. However, based at his home in Holt, he is also able to devote some of his time to CPRE as chairman of our anti-litter group and works with individuals and parish councils to promote our local Stop the Drop campaign. He believes, strongly, that we have the right to live in and enjoy the precious benefits of the countryside without the sight of roadside rubbish.
David Hook, Light Pollution Campaign Co-ordinator
David is Vice Chairman of Hempnall Parish Council and the Co-ordinator of CPRE Norfolk’s Light Pollution Campaign. In his role with CPRE, David has advised councils, businesses and individuals throughout Norfolk on lighting issues and organised one of the first conferences on light pollution in Norfolk with the Norwich Astronomical Society. He has also conducted research into parish and town council views on street lighting and light pollution and produced guidance on good practice. As with all of our campaigners, David’s light pollution work for CPRE Norfolk is entirely voluntary and he somehow manages to combine this with his job as a peripatetic music teacher.
Greg Peck, Immediate-Past Chairman / Fundraiser
After a senior executive career in the motor industry, Greg was chairman of CPRE Norfolk between April 2006 and January 2010. He also represented CPRE as a Director of the Norfolk Historic Buildings Trust over the period. Now a Trustee, he continues to meet with key charitable contacts and people of influence in the county, and continues to raise funds for CPRE Norfolk’s campaigns. Greg lives near Aylsham and has a widespread interest and love of the countryside. He also practices what he preaches, by caring for a watermeadow habitat near his home.
Links and Further Information
Download <Organisational Structure Diagram>