Trustees
Trustees
Trustees Overview
It is the aim of the charity, Hermitage Field Community Meadow, registered charity number 1190864, to restore 5.5 acres of Hermitage Field into a species rich wild flower hay meadow for the benefit of the public and biodiversity. We aim to work with the local community to achieve this by planting native wild flower grasses and seeds of local provenance to enhance this site. We welcome donations to support the work. This is a not for profit charity and all our Trustees are all volunteers, so donations are all plough ( literally!) back into the charity. We work closely with local farmers and contractors who help us manage the site. An additional 2 Acres of this field is a new Memorial woodland in the process of being planted and managed by Life for a Life Memorial Forests.
Board of Trustees
Erica Sarney – Head of Trustees
Erica leads an experienced team of Trustees to deliver the charitable objectives of the charity.
Born in Morecambe and raised in England, Nigeria and West Germany. Erica trained as a teacher and has lived and worked in Dubai, Switzerland, Sudan and Vietnam.
Wildlife and the natural environment have been a life-long interest.
Erica is a local resident and has worked as a volunteer to restore species-rich grassland locally since 2014. She is passionate about involving and educating local people of all ages and from all walks of life in this endeavour.
In 2019 Erica was awarded a BEM for services to Wildflower and Pollinator Conservation in Lancashire.
Kath Milnes – Trustee
I have lived in Halton for more than 20 years, after moving to the Lancaster area to carry out post-graduate research into grassland ecology at the University. Since finishing my PhD I have worked as an ecologist for government agencies, first in Scotland and then in Cumbria, surveying and monitoring sites of wildlife importance, and providing advice on managing land to benefit nature.
I am really excited to be a Trustee for Hermitage Field as I believe that everybody should be able to access and enjoy wildlife-rich places on their doorstep, and want to play my part in making this possible.
Richard Evans – Trustee
I began my career in London, working for several large organisations before joining a start-up in the IT sector. I moved to Lancaster in 1991 and worked at Lancaster University for 25 years.
After retiring I was able to pursue interests in nature and conservation, and began volunteering for Cumbria Wildlife Trust and Butterfly Conservation. Several years ago I also became involved in the restoration of a large green space in Lancaster called Miss Whalley’s Field, collecting local wildflower seed and growing plugs at home, before planting out in the field.
I have been a regular volunteer for Hermitage Field Community Meadow since 2021, growing wildflowers in Lancaster City Council’s poly tunnels. Seeing the transformation of these two local meadows into colourful grasslands buzzing with invertebrates has been a delight, and I am really looking forward to seeing how Hermitage Field develops over the coming years.
Lois Browne – Trustee
A warm welcome to Lois, one of our newest trustees. Lois brings considerable expertise to Hermitage Field Community Meadow through her work with Natural England.
Tim Sarney – Trustee
Lived and went to school overseas (Singapore and West Germany) from the age of 8 until leaving school in 1977 to go to Leeds University. Graduated with a BSc Honours degree in Civil Engineering in 1981. After University moved to Aberdeen and commenced my career in the Oil and Gas industry.
Over 30 years working in the upstream oil and gas industry specialising in planning and executing drilling and production operations in remote areas. Lived abroad in Dubai, Switzerland, Sudan and Vietnam for 18 years while managing projects in approximately 20 different countries in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and South America. Returned to the UK in 2006 and continued working abroad on specific projects, mainly in Africa, before taking early retirement in 2013.
Interests include travel to remote places, wildlife photography, scuba diving, hill walking and cycling. Favourite holidays include self-drive camping in southern Africa and travelling with a guide in remote parts of north-east India.