Our people

Stuart is Councillor for Winsford Over and Verdin, and Cabinet member for Community Safety and Neighbourhood Pride, at Cheshire West and Chester Council.

He has been an elected councillor since 2021 and joined The Mersey Forest Steering Group in 2025 after joining the Cabinet at Cheshire West and Chester Council.  His passion for trees was ignited as child when children could still climb inside the Major Oak in Sherwood Forest, the famous hiding place of Robin Hood. His interests now lie in the huge variety of habitats that trees provide, particularly woodland and forests that were created and are managed as working spaces.

Claire leads the Community Forest Trust, which supports, enables and champions the work of the 15 Community Forests across England. She has worked in local authorities, the voluntary sector and the civil service across a range of disciplines including environment, economic development and health and social care. Her favourite tree is the Weeping Willow for its graceful canopy and movement. 

Laura has been an elected councillor since 2011. She has long championed community gardening and wildflower and tree planting in her ward and across Liverpool. She is Cabinet Member for Neighbourhoods, Communities and Streetscene. This includes responsibility for parks and greenspaces (including cemeteries) across the city, as well as for biodiversity in Liverpool. She has worked with The Mersey Forest for many years, and is looking forward to being more directly involved as a member of the Steering Group from July 2025.   

Trevor has extensive experience of issues affecting waste services in local authorities, including insourcing collection services, procuring waste treatment contracts and electric collection vehicles, operating trade waste services and delivering efficiency savings. Trevor also has experience in managing a wide other Council services including Fleet, Highways, Street Care, Grounds Maintenance, Environmental Health, School Traded Services and the Climate Emergency.

Since becoming a Chartered CIWM Member in 2009, he has actively contributed to the work of CIWM, including being the President, Fellow and Trustee of CIWM and a former Director of WAMITAB.

Shelley has been a ward member for Halewood North, Knowsley since 2008. As Cabinet Member for Communities and Neighbourhoods, her portfolio covers a wide range of areas supporting the council’s ‘sustainable borough’ theme. She is in full support of Knowsley’s Green agenda and as part of her role works closely with the Environmental Sustainability Service supporting the delivery of schemes, such as woodland creation, climate emergency action and biodiversity enhancements as well as the delivery of Knowsley’s Green Space Action Plan.

Her favourite tree is the Oak, as its sturdy trunk and expansive branches represent strength, longevity and endurance reminding us of our enduring connection with the natural world.

Mark is a Chartered Landscape Architect with 30 years professional experience. Having graduated from Cheltenham in 1995, Mark spent 3 years at Sefton Council before moving to London in the late 1990s. He returned to Sefton in 2000 and has worked consistently to improve, develop and manage its special landscapes ever since. Now Service Manager for Green Sefton, he cares for around 6,500 hectares of landscape, including parks and urban greenspaces, street trees and woodlands and Sefton’s highly protected and internationally important coastline.

First elected in 2018, Liz has been Wirral Council’s portfolio lead for Environment, Climate Emergency and Transport since 2019. She is convinced that a much closer relationship with nature is the answer to most problems and she was determined to add Wirral to the map of the wonderful Mersey Forest, to join in all the good work being done. Liz doesn’t have a favourite tree but can be very defensive of sycamores.

Rob is Head of Planning and Place Making for Cheshire West and Chester Council. As a local authority planner for over 20 years he understands and supports the need to invest in our green spaces and woodlands to realise the benefits such spaces can bring.

Mike’s current role as Assistant Director Climate Emergency and Environment involves leading Wirral Council’s frontline and high demand environmental and regulatory services. Mike is also leading the response to the Council’s declared environment and climate emergency and commitment to being net zero by 2030. This has involved establishing the Council’s Environment and Climate Emergency Policy, which commits the Council to be net carbon neutral by 2030, launching Wirral’s Tree, Hedgerow and Woodland Strategy in 2020, and establishing the Council’s Biodiversity and Net Gain Strategy in 2023.  

Mike has worked in local government for all his career and has held senior management positions for over 25 years in the Northwest and his native Midlands.

Carole is based at Tatton Park in Knutsford, Cheshire and takes a break in the historic gardens and parkland whenever she can.

Carole is enjoying being part of nature based solutions to improve the environment, working and learning from like-minded specialists to deliver change.

Nicola has been Landscape Manager (Tree Strategy) at Wirral Council since 2021. She has expertise in ecosystem services, urban tree management, and local authority policies. Nicola leads a team of five in delivering Wirral’s Tree, Hedgerow, and Woodland Strategy.

Nicola brings experience in project management, planting initiatives, and tree strategy implementation to enhance sustainable urban environments.

Professor Eunice Simmons’ twin enthusiasms are education and the environment, and she is fortunate to have a career combining both. Her role as Vice Chancellor at the University of Chester connects her with students from across the world who share a love for their subject, a commitment to learning and a confidence in the future.

As an environmentalist, she says that convening The Mersey Forest Steering Group is a privilege as she gets to hear about amazing projects and people transforming habitats and communities across our region.

Juliet has worked on a range of environmental and climate adaptation projects for over 35 years. During her time at Liverpool City Council she has led on climate change adaptation initiatives including retrofitting Nature-Based Solutions into urban areas and natural flood management projects.

Outside of work Juliet enjoys pottering in her garden allotment.

Jake has worked within the Forestry Commission for almost 20 years, both in his current team and with Forest Research. He studied forestry at university and has experience working in the private sector and on commercial forest surveys.

Jake is driven by working in such an important sector, in the face of a climate and biodiversity emergencies, and his love of the environment. He is passionate about large scale forestry and his favourite tree is a Douglas fir.

Caroline is the Environmental Lead at Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council. She is responsible for the Environmental Sustainability Service which has developed the strategic intent and ambition of the Council in respect to climate change adaptation and mitigation; the drive for a low carbon economy and society; and the green infrastructure agenda.

She is very passionate about creating and maintaining green spaces for local people to enjoy and is proud of the work Knowsley has delivered in partnership with The Mersey Forest.

Nick is the Community, Design and Cemeteries Services Manager in Halton Borough Council. He is responsible for both cemeteries and new public realm development and community consultation for the Council. The team consists of Community Development, Cemetery and Cremation Officers, and Landscape Architects. Nick is a chartered Landscape Architect with over 30 years experience. He has practised in both the public and private sectors, mainly in the Northwest of England. He has a particular knowledge of and interest in Victorian public parks, with three successful Heritage Lottery Funded restoration schemes completed to date.

Mike has worked at St Helens Council since 2006, within the Planning Section, and helping to establish Bold Forest Park. Before that, since 1986, he worked in the Warrington and Halton areas with the Mersey Valley Partnership, on landscape and access improvement and management. Work included initial surveys to look at the potential for Urban Forestry in North Cheshire, which helped support the creation of The Mersey Forest.

Mike says that The Mersey Forest have always been a creative and innovative organisation that makes things happen on the ground, so being involved with the Steering Group is highly rewarding.

His main interest is creative conservation, especially within the urban fringe. When not working, he spends time in wild areas practicing his main passion, which is wildlife and landscape photography.

Carol has been a Parish Councilor for 6 years and a Sefton Borough Councillor for 3 years. In her current role as a Sefton Councilor, she represents the residents of Harington Ward. She has worked in the voluntary and statutory sectors, as a Senior Lecturer in further education, and a Development Officer in the charitable sector. In her professional and political career she has been deeply involved in community matters and the voluntary sector.

Her favourite part of being on The Mersey Forest Steering Group is being part of the wonderful work that is being done to develop the forest, which not only helps the forest to flourish but also the communities who benefit from the forest development. She is very interested in the involvement of volunteers in The Mersey forest and the health and wellbeing benefits it can bring to local communities.

Carol lives in the Sefton coastal forest, and the protection of this is area is important to her. She is passionate about the beach and the pinewoods on the coast. One of her favourite trees, among many, is the Silver Birch.

Becky has represented the rural ward of Bunbury in Cheshire East since 2023. She serves on the Environment and Communities Committee which plays an integral part in decision making about the environment and landscape we as Cheshire East residents live and work in.

She loves being a part of The Mersey Forest Steering Group because it is focused on action and improvement. She says that many fascinating and passionate people with a huge range of experience and knowledge get together to deliver The Mersey Forest Plan. Her favourite tree is the turkey oak (Quercus cerris).