Our board

Chair

Tony Stratton
is Chairman of CPM, Europe's leading sales development agency. He is a non-executive director of PR agency Fleishman Hillard and The Smollan Group in South Africa, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a past President of Thame Show. He has lived in Oxfordshire since 1975.

Vice-Chair

Hilary Lade
is a Trustee of the National Trust and former Managing Director of Shell's UK gas business. Recent public appointments range from Chairman of the Royal Parks to Director of the BTA/VisitBritain to Director of Southern Arts. She is a keen musician and textile designer and lives in Charlbury.

Vice-Chair

Yasmin Sidhwa
is the Head of Arts Education of Pegasus Theatre, Oxford. She has worked as an actor for The Royal National Theatre, Tara Arts Group, BBC and ITV. Yasmin is also a lecturer for Oxford University’s Department of Educational Studies.

David Attwooll

is an Oxford-based publishing consultant. He held senior positions at Oxford University Press and Random House UK before founding Helicon Publishing Limited. He is Chair of Oxmedia Network and Oxfordshire Artweeks.

Alan Berman

is the founder of Berman Guedes Stretton Architects, who work on new and historic buildings mainly for educational and community uses. Alan is involved in many community arts events and is also a keen potter.

Sir Neil Chalmers

is Warden at Wadham College. He was the Director of the Natural History Museum (London) for many years.

Sharon Cosgrove
is Strategic Director of the Environment, Oxford City Council and has particular responsibility for the Renaissance of Oxford’s West End. She is a board member of OX1, Oxford’s city centre management company.

Georgina Ferry
is a science writer and broadcaster, and editor of Oxford Today, Oxford University's alumni magazine. She has lived in Oxford since 1981.

Linda Fitzsimmons

is Dean of the School of Arts & Humanities at Oxford Brookes University.

The Right Reverend Colin Fletcher OBE
is Bishop of Dorchester, the Area Bishop of the Church of England with day-to-day responsibility for much of Oxfordshire and its 200 churches and congregations. He is also Chair of Churches Together in Oxfordshire and the South Oxfordshire Partnership, and he has a particular interest in Rural and Regional matters.

Tish Francis
is the Director of The Oxford Playhouse. She is Chair and Executive Producer of OOMF!, the organisation behind Oxford's Millennium Festivals and Jubilee Festival. She is a Deputy Lieutenant of Oxfordshire, was born in the county and has lived in Oxford since 1990.

Kate Garrett

is a professional musician who also has a passion for encouraging young people in music. She has been a Music Project Leader at the Ark-T Centre in Cowley, Oxford for five years and founded the Young Women’s Band Project, which is also based there. She is currently undertaking an MA research thesis on empowering young women through music in Oxfordshire, and hopes to use this for improving her own project, and encouraging other organisations to start similar ones.

Junie James
is a diversity consultant. She is a Board Member of East Oxford Action Ltd. (EOA) and Fusion Community Arts and Interim Chairperson of Oxford Development Education (ODEC). Her interests include social justice and community and economic development.

Penelope Marcus
is a Board Member of Arts Council England, South East, and of Modern Art Oxford. Her particular interests are the provision of venues for arts and artists in Oxfordshire, and the expansion of cultural opportunities and occasions for the realization of intellectual inspirations and ambitions.

Richard Munro
is Director of Cultural Services, Oxfordshire County Council. Before coming to Oxfordshire he managed libraries, arts and museums in Manchester, London and Coventry.