The Trustees

The Trust is managed by the Board of Trustees and four sub-committees:

Board of Trustees : Bi-monthly meetings
Buildings Preservation Committee : Meetings as necessary
Governance Committee : Meetings as necessary
Development Project Board : Monthly meetings
Marketing Committee: Quarterly meetings

To get in touch with any of our Trustees, please use our contact form and your email will be forwarded.

We currently have vacancies for new trustees. If you are interested in joining the Board, please take a look at our recruitment pack.

Trustees and advisors

Heather Lane

Chair

Heather joined the Board in 2019 and is the Trust’s Honorary Curator. She is a cultural heritage consultant and an expert advisor to the National Lottery Heritage Fund. She was Librarian and Keeper of Collections at the Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge, where she established the Polar Museum and chaired the University of Cambridge Museums Steering Group. Heather has been interim Chief Executive of Scarborough Museums Trust, worked on the Hull: Yorkshire’s Maritime City bid and managed the renovation of the University Museum of Zoology, Cambridge. She is a keen gardener and lives in Littondale.
Simon Myers

Vice-Chair

Simon is Dales born and bred and practised for nearly 30 years as a barrister. He then took over his family’s long established Antiques business in Gargrave. As Deputy Leader of Craven District Council, he was responsible for the £4 million refurbishment of the Town Hall in Skipton and Craven Museum to provide a 21^st century community asset. He is now Executive Member for Culture, Arts and Housing for North Yorkshire Council. He is involved with a number of local charities and community groups. He has a lifelong interest in the Arts, Architecture and Conservation and is a long time member of a number of related trusts and charities. He was a close friend of the late Christopher Dawson who first restored The Folly and has known the building all his life. Simon lives on a farm in Malhamdale where he keeps rare breed cattle and unruly dogs.
Richard Greenhalgh

Hon. Treasurer

Richard is a retired Chartered Accountant and has been the Honorary Treasurer of the Trust since October 2020. Although his work has been predominantly in developing and running several large tropical sugar estate projects overseas with Tate & Lyle, he and his family have lived in the Settle/Giggleswick area for over 30 years. Originally from Leeds and still a strong Leeds Rugby League supporter, he is pleased to be able to use his skills and knowledge in the ongoing development of The Folly and especially the Zion Chapel and Dr Buck's House.
Ged Benn

Trustee

Ged joined the Board in December 2021, having been a valued member of the volunteer garden team for several years. He is an experienced caver with an interest in the history of caving and its photography. He takes a particular interest in the maintenance of the buildings and grounds in the Trust's care.
Emily Coulthard

Youth Trustee

Emily was elected to the Board in October 2021. She works as a Documentation Officer for English Heritage. Emily was formerly Dynamic Collections Officer at Preston Park Museum, having previously worked at the National Railway Museum in York as Collections Hazards Officer and at the Thackray Museum in Leeds. She is a member of our Marketing Working Group.
Pippa Doran

Trustee

Pippa joined the Board in 2022. She has worked in secondary state education for 35 years as a practitioner, leader and senior education officer (for Kent County Council). With a focus on English, diversity, race and inclusion, she has advised the Teacher Training Agency, the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority, the Royal Society of Arts, the armed services in Cyprus and Germany, and Oxford University Press. She has published text books with Pearson and has written and implemented local and national educational strategy, including materials for all secondary school teachers on celebrating cultural diversity. Since disability forced early retirement, she has volunteered for recovery, refugee and careers charities and studied art history. She loves books, theatre, food, opera and knitting.
Steve Garland

Trustee

Steve is a retired museum professional with around 40 years of experience, including curatorial work and management of a range of museums and other cultural organisations across the UK. He also chairs the Stories in Stone Lottery project and is chair of the Lancashire Wildlife Trust.
Clare Littlejohn

Trustee

Clare is a retired GP with a lifelong interest in buildings.
Recently, she studied Architectural Conservation at Edinburgh University. This cemented her belief in a 'fabric first' approach to old buildings. She has spent the last two years in hands-on restoration of two local properties, using sustainable methods.

Clare has been a trustee at The Folly since 2022 and is delighted to be involved in an organisation that showcases sustainable heritage for the community.
Helen Noble

Trustee

Helen joined the Board in October 2023. She is a renowned consultant in sustainable development, environment and heritage, having been Chief Executive of the South Pennines Park, Executive Lead of the World Parks Congress, Chief Executive Officer of the Causeway Coast & Glens Heritage Trust, and Head of Strategy and Policy for the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority. She knows North Craven well, having been Interim Chief Executive Officer of the Yorkshire Dales Society, based in Settle.
Lynn Northrop

Trustee

Lynn is a registered architect who works part time, from home, for an architectural practice that specialises in conservation architecture. She has been responsible for alterations to many of the local and Dales churches and listed buildings. She became Trustee in 2015. Lynn is a founder member of the Craven Community Land Trust. She has lived in Giggleswick for more than 20 years.
Caroline Rosier

Trustee, Visitor Engagement Lead

Caroline is a retired University Lecturer specialising in Education, Training and Development..She has training in Country House Studies and conservation and has undertaken consultancy in management and organisational development. Caroline has worked Craven Museum in Skipton and at George Washington's Mount Vernon in Virginia, USA. She has been a volunteer at The Folly since January 2020, working with the Collections team and on the Admissions desk. As visitor engagement lead, she is responsible for the training and development of front of house volunteers.
Simon Whitaker

Trustee

Simon joined the Board in 2024. After studying Technical Stage Management at LAMDA, he worked as a Stage Manager in York and with Alan Ayckbourn in Scarborough. In 1982, he founded Yorkshire-based scenic construction company Stage One Creative Services Ltd. Since retiring in 2006, he has worked worldwide as Technical Project Director on a number of high profile live events, including a £4 million fit out project at the IET, Savoy Place, London for the 2012 Olympics. He is a long-serving trustee at Settle Stories, where he built a TV studio. He also volunteers with the Yorkshire Dales National Park, repairing footpaths, gates and drystone walls. Simon is particularly pleased to be involved with the ongoing work at The Folly and with bringing Zion Chapel and Dr Buck's House back into community use.
Shantanu Subramaniam

Built Heritage Advisor

Shantanu is a Partner and Principal Heritage Consultant with London-based firm Fuller Long Heritage Architecture Ltd..He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Architecture from the University of Mumbai; an M.A. in Ancient Indian History and Culture & Archaeology from Deccan College, and an M.Sc. in Architectural Conservation from the University of Edinburgh.