Meet the Trustees
Our trustees, Chair Lauren Bywater, Vice Chair Steve Kielty, James Beighton, Brian Waugh, and Jeremy Garside are all vested in the area and wish to work with the community to make the parks and green spaces the best they can be.
Each of the trustees have different skills and experience to offer, and all are bound together by their commitment and enthusiasm to enhance the environment around Redcar and Cleveland.
Lauren is General Manager of the High Tide Foundation, an independent charitable foundation funded by businesses in the Tees Valley to deliver life-changing career experiences for young people.
High Tide Foundation connects business and education across the Tees Valley, helping to increase awareness of career opportunities and to raise aspirations for young people in the area.
Lauren is immensely proud to live in Redcar and Cleveland. She grew up on the Lakes Estate in Redcar and is a former pupil of Green Gates Primary School and Ryehills Secondary School and has many memories of days spent in the town’s parks and beaches.
Now with a child of her own, Lauren loves nothing more than spending time with her family and pet dog in some of the borough’s great parks and open spaces.
Steve is a former Cleveland Police officer, with a love of the outdoors and keeping fit.
He retired from the Force in 2016 and has become a trustee for Redcar & Cleveland Parks Foundation because of his enthusiasm for the town’s parks and green spaces and the benefits they bring to people. .
As a keen walker, park runner, sea kayaker and Friend of Guisborough Forest & Walkway, Steve is an advocate for the physical and mental health benefits associated with spending time outdoors.
He also believes his career as a police officer dovetails perfectly with the Parks Alive initiative, bringing teamwork, community and effective communication together for the greater good of the area.
James is Executive Director of Tees Valley Arts and brings a wealth of experience and knowledge in working within community organisations to enhance and improve local lives.
Tees Valley Arts uses the arts to create social change across the area, supporting communities in cultural projects that help to galvanise people and champion positive change.
Prior to joining Tees Valley Arts, James was Senior Curator at Middlesbrough Institute of Modern Art (MIMA), where he worked for 12 years.
He is currently completing a PhD, looking at the cultural history of Middlesbrough and focusing on the way the visual arts have been promoted and used in the town since its formation in the 1830s.
James lives in Saltburn and is an active advocate for the parks and green spaces in Redcar and Cleveland.
Brian hails from Normanby and is proud to have visited the parks and green spaces in Redcar and Cleveland his whole life.
Now a proud grandfather, he enjoys nothing more than spending time in some of his favourite outdoor places with his grandchildren, including Flatts Lane Woodland Country Park and Eston Recreation Ground.
Brian, a businessman and Grants Co-ordinator at Zoe’s Place Children’s Hospice in Middlesbrough, believes that his strong commitment to the Redcar and Cleveland community, coupled with a deep awareness of the problems faced by its parks, will allow him to make an impact as a trustee.
Jeremy is Chief Executive of Tees Valley Wildlife Trust, with 32 years’ experience working in nature conservation and nature reserves management.
He has led the team at Tees Valley Wildlife Trust for 20 years, gaining valuable insight into managing and protecting public spaces in the local area.
Jeremy has a wealth of knowledge around working with local communities to improve the environment and has been involved in delivering a range of activities to engage people in wildlife.
The Trust owns and manages 800 acres of land as nature reserves, which are freely available to members of the public, so he is perfectly positioned to take up this role with Redcar & Cleveland Parks Foundation.
Jeremy is also a trustee of Middlesbrough Environment City and an ex-officio trustee of Saltburn Valley Gardens.