91ÇÑ×Ó

RHS Council

Discover the RHS Council, the governing body of the RHS, and learn about its members, roles, and leadership including the President and Treasurer

The RHS Council is the trusted governing body overseeing the operations of the RHS. Comprised of the RHS President, Treasurer, 15 elected members (all of whom are elected by the RHS Membership), and up to two appointed co-opted members (appointed by RHS Council), the Council guides the charity’s mission. All Council members serve as Trustees, with the President acting as Chair. Elected annually at the RHS Annual General Meeting, these leaders uphold the Royal Charter and ensure the RHS continues to thrive.

RHS Council roles

Meet the governing body responsible for the running of the RHS:

Keith Weed, CBE | RHS President

(Elected as President at the AGM in 2020)
Keith plays an active role in the governance of the RHS and is the Chair of the RHS Council and the Horticulture and Sustainability Board. From leading businesses in the public and charitable sectors, he has experience in developing and implementing strategies, fundraising and delivery of funds for charitable initiatives. Keith has a particular interest in communities, education and the positive impact gardening has on the environment and people’s health.

Matthew Lindsey-Clark | RHS Treasurer

(Elected to Council in 2016; elected as Treasurer at the AGM in 2019)
Matthew is Chair of the Finance and Commercial Board and Investments Sub-Committee and sits on the Governance and People Committee. He is the CEO of the European operations of Evercore and has more than 35 years of experience in investment banking, previously specialising in advising financial services companies before taking on his current management role.

Claire Austin | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2023; to retire in 2028)
Claire is a member of the Horticulture and Sustainability Board and the Awards Group. She has been involved with horticulture for more than 40 years and is the owner of Claire Austin Hardy Plants. Alongside a large selection of perennials, they are National Collection Holders of bearded Iris and hybrid herbaceous Paeonia. Claire believes that the connection between plants and people is essential to healthy living and that anyone can enjoy gardening at any age.

Sue Beesley | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2023; to retire in 2028)
Sue is Vice Chair of the RHS Herbaceous Expert Group, a member of the Finance and Commercial Board, Gardens Group and a Garden Advisor at RHS Bridgewater, Greater Manchester. She is the owner of Bluebell Cottage Gardens, a specialist perennial nursery. With 40 years of experience in horticulture, Sue is passionate about widening access to adult horticultural education and sustainability within the horticultural industry. Before making horticulture her career, she was co-founder and director of two successful IT companies.

Professor Mick Crawley | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2015. Re-elected in 2020; to retire in 2025)
Mick is Chair of the Bursaries Group, a Vice Chair of the RHS Woody Expert Group, and a member of both the Science and Collections Group and the Gardens Group. He is also a Garden Advisor at RHS Bridgewater, Greater Manchester. Mick is an Emeritus Professor of Plant Ecology at Imperial College London and is interested in the ecology of gardens – from the relationships between crops and weeds to the symbiotic effects of pollinators and mycorrhizal fungi.

Nick Dunn, VMH | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2019. Re-elected in 2024; to retire in 2029)
Nick is a member of the Horticulture and Sustainability Board, the Governance and People Committee, and the Gardens Group. He chairs the Awards Group and is a Garden Advisor at RHS Wisley, Surrey, and his research in hardy nursery stock propagation offers a valuable practical experience.

Tazim Essani | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2022; to retire in 2027)
Tazim has been a member of the Audit and Risk Committee since 2018 and is also a member of the Finance and Commercial Board. She is an executive coach with over 30 years of experience across strategy and digital transformation, including Non-executive Director roles on FTSE boards. Tazim brings wide experience in finance and strategy, and strongly believes that the wellbeing benefits of gardens and green spaces should be widely accessible for solace and joy.

Wesley Kerr, OBE | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2021; to retire in 2026)
Wesley is a member of the Governance and People Committee, a Trustee of the Royal Parks and Vice-President of the Metropolitan Public Gardens Association. He is keen for horticulture to reach diverse audiences, and is enthusiastic about community-based projects, all-age education and apprenticeships. Wesley would like to see sustainable green spaces cherished and the improvement of public parks through advice and volunteering.

Tony Kirkham, MBE VMH | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2022; to retire in 2027)
Tony is Chair of the RHS Woody Expert Group and a member of the Awards Group and the Horticulture and Sustainability Board. He served for 15 years on the Bursaries Committee to help raise the profile of horticulture and assist the careers of young gardeners. Tony has more than 40 years of experience as a horticulturist and arboriculturist at Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. He serves as Chair of the Garden Advisory Board at Chelsea Physic Garden, and Vice President of the Arboricultural Association.

Baroness Kate Lampard, CBE | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2018. Re-elected in 2023; to retire in 2028)
Kate is a member of the Audit and Risk Committee and the Governance and People Committee. A former barrister, she was previously the lead Non-Executive Director for the Department of Health and Social Care and Chair of GambleAware. She is also a consultant advising on governance, risk management, organisational management and culture. Kate has also been Chair of two strategic health authorities and Vice-Chair of the Financial Ombudsman Service.

Pamela Maynard | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2021; to retire in 2026)
Pamela is Chair of the Digital and IT Group and Chief AI Transformation Officer for Microsoft. A former CEO of Avanade, she brings a wealth of experience to aid the RHS in becoming an accessible organisation for everyone. Pamela’s passion for gardening was ignited at a young age, and she is keen to incorporate her skills from the technology world with that of horticulture, focusing on inclusivity, education and sustainability.

Liz Nicholson | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2024; to retire in 2029)
Liz is a member of the Horticulture and Sustainability Board and the Learning and Engagement Group. She has had a lifelong career in all aspects of horticulture and recently became a chartered environmentalist. She runs a family business, Nicholsons, offering garden design, construction, forestry and wider professional consultancy. Liz is a senior RHS judge and enjoys judging gardens across all shows. She is driven to support the RHS and the wider industry in delivering education and understanding, to enable widespread protection of climate and nature.

Dr David Rae OBE | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2015. Re-elected in 2020; to retire in 2025)
David is Chair of the Gardens Group, Awards Group and Learning and Engagement Group. He is Director of the Stanley Smith (UK) Horticultural Trust and a Trustee of the National Tropical Botanical Garden in Hawaii. David graduated with a BSc in Horticulture and joined Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh as a lecturer, advancing to become Director of Horticulture and Learning.

Darren Share, MBE | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2022; to retire in 2027)
Darren has been involved with gardening all his life, starting as an apprentice gardener and now working as a Director for The Royal Parks. He works to deliver the positive benefits of horticulture to communities and has a particular interest in gardening in an urban environment. Darren is part of the RHS Community Outreach Programme and is a Britain in Bloom judge.

Professor Nicola Spence, CBE | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2021; to retire in 2026)
Nicola is the UK Chief Plant Health Officer and is a member of the Horticulture and Sustainability Board, the Science and Collections Group and the Awards Group. She has a BSc in Botany, an MSc in Microbiology and a PhD in Plant Virology, along with more than 25 years of experience in plant pathology research in horticulture and wild plants. Her passion and skills see her take a strong personal and professional interest in protecting and promoting plants and trees.

Ruth Willmott | Ordinary Member of RHS Council

(Elected to Council in 2019. Re-elected in 2024; to retire in 2029)
Ruth is Chair of the Governance and People Committee and a member of the Audit and Risk Committee, the Finance and Commercial Board, and the Digital and IT Group. After a decade in management consultancy, Ruth retrained as a garden designer and her design portfolio covers residential, commercial and community spaces.

Explore more with the RHS

Get involved

91ÇÑ×Ó is the UK’s leading gardening charity. We aim to enrich everyone’s life through plants, and make the UK a greener and more beautiful place.