Your RHS Trustees

Council comprises the President, Treasurer, 15 members – all of whom are elected by the RHS membership - and up to two co-opted members.

President: Elizabeth Banks DL, CMLI

(Elected to Council in 2007; Re-elected as President 2011)

Elizabeth is Chairman of the Fundraising Sub- Committee and is a member of the Gardens Committee, Show Gardens Sub-Committee, Nominations and Appointments Committee, Investments Sub-Committee, Business Committee and Pensions and Remuneration Sub-Committee. Elizabeth is also an RHS Judge and a Garden Advisor for Hyde Hall.

Elizabeth is a landscape architect. Along with her husband Lawrence Banks, who is a Vice President of the Society, she manages the Hergest Estate and Hergest Croft Gardens which extend to more than 70 acres.

Elizabeth is a local councillor and trustee of several other charities including the Gateway Gardens Trust and chairman of the Queenswood Coronation Fund. She is also a member of the Arboreta Advisory Committee for Westonbirt Arboretum and Bedgebury Pinetum.

Treasurer: Sir Nicholas Bacon Bt, OBE, DL

(Elected to Council in 2008; Re-elected as Treasurer in 2011)

Sir Nicholas is the Chairman of the Pensions and Remuneration Sub-
Committee, Business Committee and RHS Special Events Ltd and is a
member of the Nominations and Appointments Committee, Investments Sub-Committee and Woody Plant Committee.

Sir Nicholas owns and runs Raveningham Hall Estate in Norfolk which is a family garden, open for 80 days a year specialising in galanthus, euphorbias, and agapanthus. He is also Chairman of the East of England Regional Committee of the National Trust, a Further Education college specialising in horticulture, an artistic festival and various other rural based organisations.

Other Members of Council

James Alexander-Sinclair

(Elected to Council in 2011; will retire at the AGM in 2016)

James is a member of the Shows Advisory Committee and the Herbaceous Plant Committee and is also an RHS Judge.

James is a practicing Garden Designer working all over the country. He also writes extensively for many magazines, newspapers and websites,
lectures at garden shows and clubs, and is occasionally let loose on television. His garden in Northamptonshire has featured widely in the garden press.

George Anderson MBE

(Re-elected to Council in 2011; will retire at the AGM in 2016)

George is Chairman of the Qualifications Advisory Committee and member of the Education and Skills Advisory Committee, Bursaries Advisory Committee and Contracts with Trustees and Connected Parties Committee. George is also an RHS Judge.

George is a plantsman and avid horticulturist having been involved in gardening and horticulture all his life. George is a keen practical gardener and allotment holder and is very concerned with the need for practical skills to be passed on to the next generation of gardeners before it is too late and they are lost. He is also a senior RHS examiner and guest presenter on The Beechgrove Garden (produced by Tern Television) George is also the president of the Royal Caledonian Horticultural Society. 

Rosie Atkins

(Elected to Council in 2010, will retire at the AGM in 2015)

Rosie is a Chairman of the Awards Advisory Committee, and a member of the Nominations and Appointments Committee, Woody Plant Committee, Gardens Committee and the Lindley Library Advisory Committee. Rosie is also the Garden Advisor for Rosemoor and an RHS Judge.

Rosie was Curator of Chelsea Physic Garden, London's oldest botanic Garden, for eight years. Rosie is a Trustee of Great Dixter Charitable Trust and Gardening for the Disabled Trust, Chairman of London Gardens Network and a Patron of The Professional Gardeners' Guild Trust Appeal and The Fairbridge Society. Rosie launched Gardens Illustrated magazine in 1992 and was awarded Editors' Editor by the British Society of Magazine Editors in 1996. Rosie has gardened in allotments, on roof gardens and the backyard of a London terrace.

Michael Balston

(Co-opted to Council until 2012)

Michael is a member of the Shows Advisory Committee and the Gardens Committee and an RHS Judge. Michael is also the Garden Advisor for Wisley.

Michael is a qualified landscape architect and has his own design practice, Balston & Company, designing and managing country gardens and estates, as well as smaller town gardens. At home in Wiltshire he has created an extensive garden which doubles as his working laboratory and has been widely featured in the gardening press. Michael is also on the Landscape Working Group for Europa Nostra.

Christopher Blundell

(Elected to Council 2009; will retire at AGM 2014)

Christopher is a member of the Fundraising Sub-Committee, the Pensions and Remuneration Sub-Committee, Woody Plant Committee and Gardens Committee. Christopher is also the Garden Advisor for Harlow Carr.

Christopher has considerable knowledge and experience both of marketing and fundraising. Christopher is a strong supporter of RHS Garden Harlow Carr and the Society’s education programme.

Dennis Espley

(Elected to Council 2011; will retire at the AGM in 2016)

Dennis is an RHS Pension Trustee, and a member of the Business and Herbaceous Plant committees. He is a member of The Worshipful Company of Gardeners, and is currently Chairman of the UK Garden Centre Association.

Dennis attended Pershore College and has spent 40 years in horticulture, mostly in garden centres, the last 25 at Squire’s Garden Centres where he is Managing Director.

Raymond Evison OBE, VMH

(Re-elected to Council 2007; will retire at the AGM in 2012)

Raymond is Chairman of the Woody Plant Committee and Plants Advisory Committee and is a member of the Awards Advisory Committee. He is one of the Society’s Vice Presidents and a holder of the Victoria Medal of Honour. Raymond is also an RHS Judge.

Raymond is the owner of The Guernsey Clematis Nursery Ltd and Raymond J. Evison Ltd, and a nurseryman and breeder, international horticultural exhibitor, judge, lecturer, author and photographer. In 1984, he formed the International Clematis Society and was its first President. He has bred or introduced more than 100 clematis plants to gardeners and was awarded the RHS Reginald Cory Cup in 2004 for his work with clematis. As an exhibitor he has received numerous RHS Gold medals and annual awards. His experience as an RHS Shows Judge dates from 1985.

Mark Fane

(Elected to Council 2009; will retire at AGM 2014)

Mark is a Director of RHS Enterprises Limited and a member of Pensions and Remuneration Sub-Committee, Business Committee and Shows Advisory Committee. He is also an RHS Judge.

Mark is a grower and retailer of plants and in 2000 he helped establish Crocus.co.uk; which is now the UK’s leading gardening internet business. He has built 17 show gardens at the Chelsea Flower Show; and these gardens have received 14 gold medals and 6 best in show awards.

Professor Peter Gregory

(Elected to Council 2010; will retire at AGM 2015)

Peter is the Chairman of the Science Committee and a member of the
Business Committee.

Peter is a soil scientist by profession with particular interests in how plant roots interact with soils and obtain water and nutrients. He is currently Chief Executive and Institute Director of the Scottish Crop Research Institute (SCRI) located near Dundee. He is a keen practical gardener who gets great pleasure from growing plants. Peter is on a wide range of scientific advisory committees including Chairman of the Advisory Committee for Novel Foods and Processes for the Food Standards Agency, and is a member of the Scottish Science Advisory Council.

David Haselgrove

(Re-elected to Council 2011; will retire at the AGM in 2013)

David is a member of the Audit and Risk Committee, Business Committee, Contracts with Trustees and Connected Parties Committee, Gardens Committee, Nominations and Appointments Committee, Plants Advisory Committee and Rock Garden Plant Committee and is the Garden Advisor for Hyde Hall and also an RHS Judge.

David practiced as a Solicitor for 36 years in North East London until his retirement. Since 1985 he has created a 3 ½ acre garden on a bare field site in Hertfordshire. David served as publications manager for the Alpine Garden Society for 25 years and currently serves on its Committee.

The Hon Sarah Joiner

(Re-elected to Council 2011; will retire at AGM 2012)

Sarah is a member of Education and Skills Advisory Committee, Bursaries Advisory Committee, Lindley Library Advisory Committee, Picture Advisory Committee, Fundraising Sub-Committee and the Daffodil and Tulip Committee.

Sarah Joiner is the Chairman of Trustees at the Gardening for the Disabled Trust, and is also Patron of the MS Trust and an Expert Patient member on a number of forums focusing on Long Term Neurological Conditions. She is a member of the London Parks and Gardens Trust and the Historic Gardens Foundation. She is a past Chairman of the Cook Society and former Lady Mayoress of Westminster.

Jekka McVicar

(Re-elected to Council 2010; will retire at the AGM in 2015)

Jekka is a member of the Fruit, Vegetable and Herb Committee, the Science Committee, the Nominations and Appointments Committee, Awards Advisory Committee, Shows Advisory Committee and the RHS Three Counties Agricultural Society Joint Committee. She is also an RHS Judge.

Jekka is renowned for her Herb Farm in Alveston, Bristol. She is committed to organic horticulture and has been certified by the Soil Association. Jekka has achieved great success as an exhibitor, having won 13 Gold Medals at Chelsea and 61 Gold Medals in total. She was also awarded the Best Floral Exhibit at Hampton Court in 2007 and 2008. Jekka has written four books and is a regular contributor to national horticultural magazines.

David Morrison

(Re-elected to Council 2008; will retire at the AGM in 2013)

David is the Chairman of Nominations and Appointments Committee and is a member of the Business Committee and Gardens Committee.

As Chairman of the board of R.H.S. Enterprises, David oversees the
Society’s plant centres, shops, publications, events, catering and licensing activities.

In his professional career, David has been involved in Investment Management, where the financing and development of companies in a range of industrial sectors, has provided him with a wealth of experience in issues related to business and financial management, corporate governance and strategic direction.

Sandy Muirhead

(Re-elected to Council 2009; will retire at the AGM in 2013)

Sandy is Chairman of the Audit and Risk Committee and the Investments Sub-Committee, and is a member of the Business Committee, the Pensions and Remuneration Sub-Committee and the Herbaceous Plant Committee.

Sandy is a chartered accountant and is a founder partner of a leading private equity firm, Phoenix, which provides capital to support the growth and development of medium-sized UK companies. Sandy is passionate about gardening and, with his wife, spent 16 years creating an 8 acre garden from scratch.

Dougal Philip

(Re-elected to Council 2009; will retire at the AGM in 2014)

Dougal is Chairman of the Shows Advisory Committee and the Contracts with Trustees and Connected Parties Committee, sits on the Business Committee and is an RHS Judge.

Dougal has established and run his own garden centre outside Edinburgh for more than 30 years and is a former President and long-time supporter of the Horticultural Trades Association. Dougal has experience of designing and building show gardens and now acts as a judge and moderator at RHS Shows.

Prunella Scarlett LVO

(Re-elected to Council 2010; will retire at the AGM in 2012)

Prunella is Chairman of the Herbaceous Plant Committee. She is also a
member of the Contracts with Trustees and Connected Parties Committee, Plants Advisory Committee, and the Fundraising
Sub-Committee. Prunella is also an RHS Judge.

Prunella has also previously contributed to the Society is the areas of education and as Chairman of the Nominations Committee. Her professional employment was with the Royal Commonwealth Society, where she served as Director, Commonwealth Affairs. Prunella has also served as Chairman or Board member on several international charities.