Trustees

Tim originally qualified as a solicitor and went on to become Chairman or main Board Director of a number of public and private companies in the construction sector. He brings to his role a wealth of experience at senior level in the governance of the University of Bristol, the Dolphin Society, Quartet Community Foundation and Clifton College. He was Master of the Merchant Venturers in 2015/2016 and is currently Vice Chairman of Bristol and Bath Regional Capital, President of the Gloucestershire Society and Chairman of the Governors at Collegiate School.

Ross brings wide experience as an entrepreneur and business leader, both in executive and non-executive roles within a range of businesses, including finance, property, construction and civil engineering. A qualified accountant, he has led a variety of businesses as CEO and Chair over the course of his career. He is a member of the Society of Merchant Venturers, serving as Master in 2020, and has been involved in a variety of charitable organisations through the Society, including Venturers’ Trust and the Care of the Elderly committee.

Robert Bourns is a Bristolian who has long links with the Trust, both personally (his mother was a resident for a number of years) and more recently as a Trustee. He is a solicitor and worked as a partner at a large national law firm, both in the Bristol and London offices, and is currently Chair of the Law Society of England and Wales. A former trustee and chair of St Peter’s Hospice, he is currently chair of governors of an all-through school in south Bristol. As a consequence, he is familiar with charities working within a regulated environment and where high levels of personal care are fundamentally important.

Susan Darwall Smith, a Trustee since June 2016, has extensive legal experience including 20 years as a Judge of the Family Court in Bristol. Susan emphasises the importance of striking a balance between maintaining our traditional values and ensuring the progression and forward thinking nature of the Trust. Upon retirement, Susan has committed to several charitable roles within the Bristol area including President of the Grateful Society and Chair of Bristol NSPCC. Susan reaffirms that the opening of The Chocolate Quarter presents an exciting opportunity for the Trust to further integrate with the wider community, in particular with younger generations.

Anne’s professional background is in social housing and she was a member of the senior team of a large, local housing association for many years. During her career, she led a wide range of business support services including HR, IT, finance, the company secretariat function, PR, marketing and communications, business improvement and facilities management. She also held policy briefs for governance, business planning, equality and diversity and business continuity. She is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. She is also a member of the Board of WE Care Home Improvements, a local not-for-profit agency that aims to help people continue to live independently in their own homes.

Her two great passions are people and housing, so she sees becoming a Trustee as an opportunity to combine these and put the experience she’s gained over the years to good use. She hopes to help improve services for current customers, build the reputation of the Trust as a great place to work and shape the development of the Trust’s services for the benefit of future generations.

Debbie England has been the Director of HR at the University of West of England since 2009 and joined the St Monica Trust council in January 2018. A fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, she brings to her role as a Trustee a wealth of expertise from HR and management roles in financial services, retail and catering. Debbie is also a trustee of Music Space and on the Common Purpose Advisory Group.

During her career spanning over thirty years in the NHS, Frances developed a particular interest in treatment of older people. As a consultant anaesthetist at University Hospitals Bristol (UHB), she specialized in anaesthetising the older people for ophthalmic and orthopaedic surgery.

On a personal note, Frances had first hand experience of care of the older people in the community when assisting with the care and support of a very elderly mother who eventually became very frail with dementia in her nineties.

For 3 years Frances was Associate Medical Director at UHB with specific responsibility for Revalidation and Relicensing of medical staff. This post gave unique insight into the positive and negative working practices of doctors both at junior and senior level.

Frances is a member of the Trusts care committee and works with the care team at the Trust to monitor, improve and implement best practice in this core area.

After a fulfilling career in banking, Christine was ordained by the Church of England in 1994. She was appointed Archdeacon of Malmesbury in 2011 and, in addition, Acting Archdeacon of Bristol until retirement in October 2018. It was as a curate, chaplain and vicar that Christine came to know the ethos of the St Monica Trust, while visiting parishioners living in its retirement communities. She is particularly supportive of the Trust's forward-looking approach to the care of older people.

As the co-founder and CEO of international renewable energy consultancy the Garrad Hassan Group, Dr Andrew Garrad applies his extensive business experience to help the Trust maintain the highest standards of governance. Closer to home, Andrew chaired Bristol's year as European Green Capital in 2015, was a member of the Council of the University of Bristol from 2012 to 2016 and received a CBE for services to renewable energy in 2017. Andrew feels passionately that older people should not be socially segregated and is a champion of intergenerational living.

Still enjoying General Practice in Bristol after 29 years, Michael has developed an interest in the care of older people, particularly in care homes. He has experience as a charitable trustee, having served on the boards of The Anchor Society, The Orthopaedic Trust and The Royal Humane Society. Michael is a member of the Trust's care committee and nursing home committee and with his experience hopes to help develop the care and support provided by the Trust.

Professor Joe McGeehan comes to his role as a Trustee from a background in communications, where he has been teaching, researching and pioneering developments in the field since 1973. Joe also brings insight from his work as a mentor for start-up companies and is the founder of ‘Invest Bristol and Bath (IBB)’ which is part of the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership. In 2004, Professor McGeehan was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours for ‘Services to the Communications Industry’.

Dr Liz O’Driscoll has 20 years experience of driving innovation and leading complex change in public and private sector organisations. Through her career, she has held a range of strategic positions related to the deployment of emerging technologies, gaining a unique perspective on the barriers to their exploitation across a range of sectors.

Liz currently heads up the corporate innovation lab for the UK public services software provider, Civica and has recently been appointed to the TechUK Smart Cities and Communities advisory panel, working to build public trust in future technologies and mitigate emerging risks related to climate change.

Liz lives in Bristol with her husband and two children.

Sir David Wills is the great, great nephew of Henry and Monica Wills, founder of St Monica Trust. Sir David is a farmer and landowner. He is a Past Master of the Merchant Venturers’, Patron of the St Monica Trust, North Somerset Agricultural Society and Bristol Care and Repair. He is Trustee and Chairman of Farmlink Education Ltd and the Langford Trust for Animal Health and Welfare. Sir David is also a Trustee of the Royal Bath and West Society.

Among her numerous charitable roles, Lady Paula Wills is Vice President of the Quartet Community Foundation, Patron of Arnos Vale Cemetery and Patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust. She is also Patron of the National Eye Research Centre and the Bristol Chair of the Canine Partners Committee, along with her position as Patron of the St Monica Trust.