Our Board of Trustees

Our Board of Trustees act as a body of charity trustees, and as directors for the purposes of company law. New trustees are appointed through a recruitment process that includes advertised vacancies and executive search, joining for an initial three-year term, with the option to serve up to four terms.

The Board meets five times a year to review strategy and performance, supported by committees led by trustees in areas such as Finance & Resources, Conservation, Ethics, HR Remuneration & Nomination Committee, and Development. While committees do not have executive authority, they are chaired by a trustee, operate under specific guidelines, and offer guidance to senior management.

To meet Charity Commission standards, Marwell regularly evaluates its work to ensure it aligns with its charitable mission. Day-to-day management is led by the Chief Executive and her Executive Team.

Our trustees bring expertise from business, media, academia, conservation, education, and land management, guided by a regular skills audit to align with our goals.

Frank McCaffrey (Chairman)

Frank joined Marwell’s Board in 2016. He graduated with an honour’s degree in Industrial Economics from Nottingham University and followed a long and successful career in Media beginning with a variety of senior roles in regional newspaper operations and latterly as Managing Director of a digital focused Exchange & Mart business.

Frank has led many organisations through significant technological, structural and cultural change.

Mark Charter, FALA (Fellow of Agricultural Law Association), CLA

Mark joined Marwell’s Board in 2016, bringing with him a wealth of experience in the farms and estates sector. He currently heads Blake Morgan’s Farms and Estates team, looking after a wide spectrum of clients in the rural sector including traditional farming partnerships, corporate agribusiness, landowning organisations with philanthropic roots, and government bodies.

A qualified solicitor, Mark has also acted as a Trustee in both professional and voluntary roles, which include the Tramman Trust, a charitable trust for the arts, and Eastleigh Housing Association.

Jacky Wearn

Jacky brings over 25 years of global HR and organisational development expertise to her role as a trustee.

With experience in corporate and consulting environments, she has a strong record in strategic transformation, talent management, and leadership development. Jacky has held senior roles at FTSE100 companies including DS Smith and Centrica, leading sustainability, digital transformation, and diversity initiatives.

Currently as Director of TalentQi Ltd, Jacky provides strategic HR consulting focused on people strategy, board support, and executive coaching. She also serves as Interim People Director at Berry Brothers & Rudd, shaping sustainability strategies and executive team development.

Jacky holds a Master’s in Human Resource Management, is a certified executive coach, and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Her passion for inclusive leadership and strategic planning supports Marwell Wildlife’s mission to drive impactful conservation initiatives whilst allowing our people and communities to flourish.

James Bailey

James is a marketing-orientated senior executive with experience in the private and public sectors. He has extensive experience working for high-profile businesses. By listening to the customer, thinking laterally, and using data at the heart of strategy, he has a track record of growing revenue. Through his approach to leadership, he is skilled at bringing multiple departments together to deliver the company’s mission. He thrives in an entrepreneurial setting where problem solving is a daily necessity and has proven transferable skills to succeed in highly regulated spaces.

Simon Tonge

Simon is the former Executive Director of Wild Planet Trust, a charitable organisation based in the south-west of the UK, which owned Paignton and Newquay zoos, the Living Coasts exhibit in Torquay and three nature reserves in Devon. He graduated in Zoology from the University of Bristol in 1980 and his subsequent career included the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, where he was a herpetologist, and the Zoological Society of London. His career also included two years training as an accountant. He is a past chairman of both the British and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and the European Association of Zoos and Aquariums, and sits on the board of two conservation charities in southern Africa. He is a serious birder and interested in all aspects of natural history and conservation.

Naomi Mellor

With 17 years in veterinary science and 6 years in media and communications, Naomi brings a strategic, compassionate approach to her work as a trustee.

A licensed veterinary surgeon specialising in equine medicine and animal welfare, she has a deep understanding of regulatory standards and ethical practices. As a former Veterinary Officer for the British Horseracing Authority, she ensured compliance with animal welfare regulations.

Beyond her scientific expertise, Naomi is an accomplished communications professional. She has spearheaded impactful projects, including founding and hosting the award-winning International Women’s Podcast Awards, championing women’s voices in media and managing partnerships with major platforms such as BBC Sounds and Amazon Music.

Her commitment to advocacy is reflected in her six years of service as Treasurer for Women in Racing, where she focused on elevating the career prospects of women in the horseracing industry. Naomi’s expertise, from veterinary science to communications and project management, positions her as a dynamic trustee dedicated to fostering ethical leadership, strategic growth, and inclusivity at Marwell Wildlife.

Andrew Warren, FCA, MBA

After qualifying as a Chartered Accountant with Ernst & Young, Andrew spent nearly 20 years in the commercial sector with Procter & Gamble and Coca-Cola. He first moved into the charity sector in 2009 becoming the Finance Director and Deputy CEO at the Grange Centre, a charity providing support, training and housing for adults with disabilities. After obtaining an MBA he then joined Marwell Wildlife as Finance Director where he worked until 2016. Andrew joined The Brain Tumour Charity as Director of Finance & Governance in 2017, retiring in 2020.

Diane Walkington, BSc (Hons)

Diane joined Marwell’s Board of Trustees in 2020 and has enjoyed a career of two halves. The first 20 years of her working life was in IT and finance, lastly as Senior Vice President for a large American retail bank. With the specific objective of a career change into conservation, Diane obtained a degree in Applied Biology and Conservation, and has since enjoyed many years working for WWF, with most recent roles being Wildlife Programme Director and then International Programmes Director.

Diane then moved into a consulting role, alongside very happily becoming a Trustee for Marwell. Her leisure time is spent hiking with her dogs, horse riding, kayaking and exploring nature.

Adrian Neal

Adrian joined the Board of Trustees in 2022 and lives in the heart of Hampshire. He is an experienced chartered surveyor with over 35 years in practice, specialising in rural properties. Adrian moved to Winchester in 1986 to take up the position of Head of Office and in 2015 following a merger appointed a director of Savills (UK) Ltd, Rural Division. He stepped down as Head of Office at the end of 2020 to devote more time to a client facing role and non-executive appointments.

Adrian’s expertise is in the environmentally sustainable management of rural estates and general rural practice work throughout Central Southern England for charities, private and public sector landowners.  Having an understanding of agricultural property law he developed an interest in dispute resolution and in 2007 completed a post graduate diploma in arbitration.

Conservation Governance

Laura Read – Chief Executive

Laura has 20 years of experience in leadership roles within the destination management, retail, hospitality and events sectors and joined Marwell in March 2024 from Westquay Shopping Centre where she was Destination Director.

Laura is also Chair of Southampton Forward, the city’s cultural trust, which aims to enhance the region through cultural activations, festivals and events and tourism.

Learn more about our Chief Executive.

Laura is supported by a team of Directors who are:

Jo Deller Chartered MCIPD, FInstLM – People & Services Director

A Chartered member of the CIPD and a Fellow of the Institute of Leadership and Management with 25 years’ experience in People development and management.

Jo joined Marwell in 2015 and holds responsibility for 4 key strategic areas of the organisation – HR, IT, Finance and Infrastructure.

In her capacity as People & Services Director and reporting the Chief Executive, Jo ensures the continuous development of our vibrant organizational culture, the inclusivity and equity of our workplace, the strengthening of park infrastructure and an integrated operational approach.

Sean Mannie – Commercial Director

With a career spanning commercial, public and charitable sectors, Sean has been Commercial Director at Marwell Wildlife since 2012, after holding the senior management role at the Royal Armouries Museums at HM Tower of London and Fort Nelson in Hampshire.

Responsibilities at Marwell cover a wide remit including commercial strategy, guest operations, marketing, communications and fundraising. As a qualified practitioner in Project Management and Management of Risk disciplines, Sean is also responsible for organisational Risk Management, including emergency planning and business continuity.

Externally, Sean is the founding and current Chair of BIAZA’s Commercial & Guest Service Working Group and Vice-Chair of the BIAZA Mission Enabling Committee. He also regularly writes a blog for Blooloop.com on the business and operational aspects of running a zoo and is the industry expert on recreation and commercial aspects, supporting delivery of the Zoo Keeper & Aquarist Apprenticeship Course at the National Zoo Academy, based at Sparsholt College in Winchester.

Will Justice BVSc MSc MBA MRCVS – Animal Care Director

A qualified veterinary surgeon for nearly 20 years, Will completed a Masters degree in Wild Animal Health in 2007 and worked in exotic animal referral practice before becoming a full time zoo veterinarian for 7 years. During this time, Will provided first opinion veterinary care for the animals at Marwell and also worked on various aspects of Conservation Medicine, including advising on the health of managed wildlife populations and health screening for wildlife reintroductions. In 2015, Will was appointed a Teaching Fellow in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine at the University of Surrey’s School of Veterinary Medicine alongside his role at Marwell. Finishing his teaching role in 2016, he continues to work closely with academics at the University as an honorary Research Fellow.

Since 2017 Will has focused on managing the animal care, veterinary and horticultural teams at Marwell, completing a part-time MBA in 2021. His research interests include animal welfare assessment in captive and free-living wildlife and he has authored/co-authored several journal articles and book chapters on various topics, including animal welfare assessment, zoo animal medicine and animal handling.

Professor Philip Riordan B.Sc. (Hons), M.Sc. (Dist), PhD – Conservation Director

Phil joined Marwell in 2016 and has worked as a conservationist in U.K. and overseas for over 25 years in research, policy, and delivery.

Phil is currently Visiting Professor in University of Southampton, Visiting Professor at Beijing Forestry University, UN Expert with the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS); the UNEP Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) and the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

As Director of Conservation, Phil leads Marwell’s UK and overseas programmes, inspiring people around the world to engage with conservation issues and seek solutions to the biodiversity and climate crisis we face.

Organisational structure by function

The downloadable diagram below illustrates the functional layout of our organisation and the current reporting structure which takes its inspiration from our strategy.

Marwell was founded by John Knowles in 1972. The organisation began as Marwell Preservation Trust with more specific goals of protecting and breeding endangered species through the operation of Marwell Zoological Park set in the heart of the Hampshire countryside near Winchester.

Our activities evolved and diversified rapidly during the subsequent decades in accordance with the emerging multidisciplinary science of conservation biology, and increasing global awareness of the importance of biodiversity for human wellbeing.

With these changes and a growing portfolio of conservation and education programmes, it became increasingly evident that we needed to articulate our contributions as a diverse, holistic and internationally active conservation charity. At the same time, we recognised the need to enhance the profile of the park, which remains our principal means of engaging the public and galvanising support for our charitable endeavour.

On 1 April 2009, Marwell Preservation Trust / Marwell Zoological Park became ‘Marwell Wildlife’ with a brand promise of connecting people with nature that now resonates throughout the organisation’s work. Marwell Wildlife operates and runs Marwell Zoo in Hampshire.

Gender Pay Gap 

As an employer of more than 250 people, we are required by law to publish our gender pay gap, both on the Government’s Gender Pay Gap reporting tool, and on our own website. In accordance with this, we are now publishing our latest report based on April 2023 data.

Gender Pay Gap is a measure of the difference in the average pay of women and men.

At Marwell Wildlife (“Marwell”), we take our responsibility to ensure fair pay for all our employees very seriously. As standard, we undertake regular salary reviews and benchmarking exercises. We collate data from a variety of source materials including the zoo industry, HR forums, benchmarking organisations, regional salary surveys and tourism groups.  In addition, we consider factors such as demographics, geographical location and local competition for talent and ensure that we, where possible, align ourselves with those who exhibit best practice.

As at 4 April 2023 we employed 242 individuals (162 female/80 male). Of those, 211 were deemed full pay relevant employees by Gender Pay Gap definition. Of these 211 individuals, 108 worked part time with 79 of these being female.

What the figures tell us:

Marwell is reporting a Gender Pay Gap of 12.3% by mean and 9.4% by median. Key factors relating to this figure are that:

At the date the figures were compiled in April 2023, all employees were paid at least the national living wage (£10.42 per hour), or above.

In addition to this, primarily, we have a significantly higher number of female to male employees in roles at the lower end of our pay scales, which tend to attract lower rates of pay.

The ratio of male to females at Director level was 4:1 (4 male and 1 female Director) and this also impacts our gender pay gap figures.

However, at other levels of management the male to female ratio is much more even. For example, at our next most senior level of management, our Head of Department level, the ratio is 5:6 male/females.

We value the commitment of all our employees and fair pay is important to us, regardless of age or gender, all our employees are paid the same hourly rate for the same job role performed.

Bonus Gender Pay Gap

Bonuses are non-contractual and do not occur every year. Bonus payments were not made to any staff during the past year and therefore we are reporting a zero return for this.

66.94% of our employees are female and this is widely reflected in the quartile analysis above.

Next Steps:

We continue to actively support flexible working wherever possible. Work life balance at Marwell is important to us, and this is reflected in the high proportion of part time employees.

We are refreshing our recruitment & selection training both for external appointments and internal promotion opportunities, to ensure we continue to attract all gender types for our positions and that we continue to recruit fairly in accordance with experience and knowledge for role.

We shall continue to be committed to a fair pay policy for all.