New appointments in 2020

Appointments have been made to England’s National Park Authorities (NPAs) and the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) Conservation Board

The following appointments have been made for four years:

Broads Authority

• Stephen Bolt
• Matt Shardlow

Dartmoor NPA

Exmoor NPA

• Dominic Elson
• Michael Patrick Kelly
• Susan Warren

New Forest NPA

Lake District NPA

Northumberland NPA

• Elizabeth Ellis
• Marie Fallon

Peak District NPA

Yorkshire Dales NPA

South Downs NPA

• Annie Brown
• Timothy Burr
• Melanie Hunt
• Stephen Whale
• Baroness Jones of Whitchurch

Re-appointments in 2020

The following members have been re-appointed for further four-year terms:

Broads Authority

• Bill Dickson
• Greg Munford

Dartmoor NPA

• Andrew Cooper
• Pamela Woods

Exmoor NPA

South Downs NPA

Yorkshire Dales NPA

The following members have been re-appointed for further terms of two years:

North York Moors NPA

• Alison Fisher
• Andrew Scott

Peak District NPA

The following members were re-appointed for further three year terms:

Chilterns AONB Conservation Board

• Ian Waller
• Elizabeth Wilson

Costwolds AONB Conservation Board

The following members were re-appointed for further three year terms:

• George Lambrick
• Brenden McCarthy

There is a requirement for appointees’ political activity to be made public. Baroness Jones of Whitchurch is a Labour life peer.

The government has today (14 July 2020) confirmed its proposals for reforming higher technical education. These arrangements strengthen the opportunities for employers to input into these Level 4 and Level 5 qualifications. Employer contributions in this way are important to the shape and success of these qualifications, which are vital for sustaining future workforces across the economy.

Phil Beach, CBE, Executive Director of Vocational and Technical Qualifications at Ofqual said:

I am delighted that Ofqual will be supporting the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education to achieve their aims for these important qualifications. We want employers to have the confidence in these qualifications that they do in others. Alignment with employer-led occupational standards will be an important feature of Higher Technical Qualifications. I’m sure that recognised awarding organisations will want to play their active part in delivering them.

The government’s reforms retain the established regulatory framework. Awarding organisations will need to be recognised by Ofqual or the Office for Students in order to submit qualifications to the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (the Institute) for approval. Ofqual will provide advice to the Institute during the approvals process and will implement a regulatory approach to support the expected quality standards.

The Queen is pleased to appoint Mrs Jane Margaret MacLeod as Her Majesty’s Lord-Lieutenant for Argyll and Bute in succession to Mr Patrick Stewart CVO MBE, who is due to retire on 25th July.

Ava Garside, a student from Leeds, was awarded the overall individual prize in the UK Space Agency’s SatelLife Competition and will receive £6,000 for her pin badge which monitors air pollution.

Students from the University of Bath won the overall group prize of £7,000 for their answer to detecting illegal sand mines. These are just two of the winning entries in the Agency’s 4th annual SatelLife Competition.   

The SatelLife Competition aims to encourage young people to think about how satellites can enhance our everyday lives and learn more about the diverse carers available in the sector. Ideas during this year’s competition ranged from apps that predict crop health to contact tracing in a pandemic. Those closer to home could see their lives improved with a wrist band to guide and support those with dementia.

British ESA astronaut Tim Peake said:

Satellites are essential to everyday activities. When data collected by satellites are applied creatively, we can look to solve many of the problems we face on Earth.   

The UK space sector is an exciting place to work, and jobs in space are not just for astronauts. Careers include analysts, engineers, designers and entrepreneurs, I do not doubt that in the future these exceptional young people will be at the front of the line for these jobs.” 

Science Minister Amanda Solloway said:

Satellites play a vital role in all our lives, not just for day-to-day activities like making a phone call or using GPS, but also for tackling some of the world’s greatest challenges such as climate change.

The innovation demonstrated by the SatelLife winners has been truly inspiring and I look forward to watching them and other brilliant young talent develop flourishing careers in our exciting and thriving space industry.” 

The next step for these successful winners is to pitch their ideas to a panel of ‘dragons’ at the Harwell Space Cluster in October for the chance to win further prizes. Previous awards have included additional funding, patent advice and invitations to discuss job opportunities as well as introductions to the other relevant experts for further help.

The SatelLife competition has seen previous winners go on to careers in the space sector and continue to develop their idea into reality.