Bexley Heritage Trust

Bexley Heritage Trust was set up in 2000 as a not for profit organisation to manage Hall Place and to be a focus for heritage in Bexley.

In November 2000, the Trust formally adopted its Statement of Purpose or Mission:

To develop the buildings, gardens and collections under Bexley Heritage Trust control, and to provide a high quality service offering vibrant cultural sites and activities for the education and enjoyment of everyone.

In 2004, the Trust took on the management of Danson House nearby in Bexleyheath, another important historic property in Bexley recently and splendidly restored by English Heritage.

The Trust’s medium term goals, adopted in 2004 in pursuit of the vision, are:

1. to develop Hall Place and Danson House sensitively and appropriately;
2. to understand our customers and their needs better to provide a targeted service;
3. to build upon the successful delivery of the education service, developing the education programmes, outreach and life long learning activities, enhancing the visitor experience and broadening the audience.
4. to develop a new approach to interpretation of collections and Bexley’s culture and heritage at Hall Place (and Danson House); and
5. to improve collections management in line with Registration Standards.

The Trust is a registered charity, run by a board of trustees.

Trustees

Bill Roots is the Trust's chairman. He was formerly Chief Executive and Director of Finance of Westminster City Council He is now an independent consultant operating in central government, local government and the wider public sector.

Mike Lovett is the Secretary to the Trustees and a retired senior banker with Nat West Bank.

Bill Fairhall is a retired director of FMCS Ltd, a grounds maintenance contractor with major contracts in the region, and now works as a buildings maintenance consultant.

Jane Sharman is Chair of the Architectural Heritage Fund, former acting Chief Executive of English Heritage, and former Chairman of the HLF Expert Panel on historic buildings. She is trustee of various museum and heritage bodies.

Dr Aylin Orbasli is a historic building consultant, working on buildings conservation and management in the UK and overseas, and a lecturer at Oxford.

Dr Chris Miele is an architectural historian and consultant, working for Alan Baxter Associates. He is a former Historic Buildings Advisor to the London Region English Heritage.

Lesley Howes is a garden historian and archaeologist, working for Lesley Howes Archaeological Services. She has worked on the English Heritage Register of Historic Parks & Gardens Upgrade Project and London Historic Parks & Gardens Trust gazetteer of Parks and Gardens.

Peter Hofford is a criminal lawyer and a former Chairman of the Bexley Civic Society.

Jonathon Rooks is a zoologist, accountant and university lecturer and was previously a Councillor with Bexley Council.

Cllr Len Newton is a councillor with Bexley Council and a former Deputy Leader and Leader of the Council.

Cllr Peter Catterall is a an author, editor and lecturer in history at Queen Mary’s College,London and is Bexley Council’s cabinet member for Leisure, Arts and Tourism.

Staff contacts