About the town deal board members

On this page you can find out more about the Town Deal board members.

Co-chair: Carole Dixon (Hastings Community Network)

Having a background in education, Carole moved into the charity sector in January 2012 to establish and lead the Education Futures Trust. Her passion lies in improving the life chances of children and vulnerable adults in our town. Having lived and worked in Hastings for almost thirty years, she believes that education, in its broadest sense, provides the route out of poverty and into a hopeful future.

The charity has come a long way since its inception, and as its Chief Executive she has worked closely with other charities, the public and private sector to build local partnerships. Together we can have so much more impact in the town. Currently chairing the Hastings Community Network Executive Group, the Skills and Learning in the Community charity and the Local Strategic Partnership, while also being a member of the local Executive Delivery Group, CHART Local Action Group, Hastings Opportunity Area Board and East Sussex Skills Partnership. Any spare time she has is spent with family or their skittish 16.3hh horse.

• Carole Dixon Declaration of interest.pdf

Co-chair: Graham Peters (SELEP/Team East Sussex)

After training as an engineer Graham changed direction becoming a property advisor, investor and developer. He has lived in East Sussex for nearly 30 years and has been involved in regeneration initially in the rural areas of East Sussex for over 20 years. He Chairs Team East Sussex charged with regenerating the County, is a a Vice Chairman of SELEP, a parish councillor, school governor and churchwarden, and is a Deputy Lieutenant of East Sussex. He is also a Trustee of the Sussex Heritage Trust, the Rural Rother Trust and a director of the Woodland Enterprise Centre. For fun he sings, welds, fishes and swims.

• Graham Peters Declaration of interest.pdf

Jess Steele OBE (Trinity Triangle Heritage Action Zone)

Director of Jericho Road Solutions, with 25 years’ experience of community-led regeneration. A founder trustee and now advisor to the Heart of Hastings Community Land Trust, lead partner for the HAZ, currently studying for a PhD in self-renovating neighbourhoods. 

Jericho Road provides coaching to neighbourhood groups and community businesses across England while working with government, funders, corporations and academics on national initiatives to make community-led change easier. It invests profits directly into people and projects in Hastings, including one-third ownership of the social developer White Rock Neighbourhood Ventures, owners of Rock House and the Observer Building. 

• Jess Steele Declaration of interest.pdf

Liz Coleman (Hastings and Rother Interfaith Forum)

Hastings and Rother Interfaith forum's mission is to promote community cohesion through dialogue, co-operation and festivities between people with faith in a God and those who do not, enabling them to embrace difference. Joining the Town Deal Board will enable me to promote this vision of community cohesion while also promoting an economy that will be of benefit to all.

• Liz Coleman Declaration of interest.pdf

Catherine Parr and John Bownas (Love Hastings Ltd - Hastings Business Improvement District - BID)

To represent the interests of the town centre businesses.

• Catherine Parr Declaration of interest.pdf
• John Bownas Declaration of interest.pdf

Cllr Paul Barnett (Hastings Borough Council)

Leader of Hastings Borough Council.

• Cllr Paul Barnett Declaration of interest

Cllr Maya Evans (Hastings Borough Council)

Deputy Leader of Hastings Borough Council and portfolio holder for Housing and Community Development.

• Cllr Maya Evans Declaration of Interest

Jane Hartnell (Hastings Borough Council)

Hastings Borough Council's Managing Director. Responsible for Financial Services, People and Business Support, Legal services, Accommodation and Transformation, IT, Policy, Continuous Performance and Democratic Services.

• Jane Hartnell Declaration of interest.pdf

James Harris (East Sussex Council)

Assistant Director of Economy for East Sussex County Council, responsible for the economic development of the county and promoting public and private investment.

• James Harris Declaration of interest.pdf

Sally-Ann Hart (MP for Hastings and Rye)

Member of Parliament (MP) for Hastings and Rye since 2019.

• Sally-Ann Hart Declaration of interest.pdf

Justin Thomas (NewRiver REIT)

Justin has over 25 years of property management and development experience, having qualified as a Chartered Surveyor in 1994 with Savills, then subsequently moving to Cluttons land management and valuation team.

In 1999 Justin joined specialist residential developer Pathfinder Properties PLC and in 2004 established Maxam Property Ltd, a private residential developer and consultancy company. The company has also carried out hotel development, strategic land planning and development consultancy to the renewable energy and zero carbon housing sector.

Justin was a member of the RICS Board of UK Education Standards for over 10 years, he is currently a member of the BPF Development Committee and also Chairs the Grays Towns Fund Board.

• Justin Thomas Declaration of interest.pdf

Andrew Harvey (NewRiver Reit)

Priory Meadow Shopping Centre Manager.

• Andrew Harvey Declaration of interest.pdf

Steve Manwaring (Hastings Voluntary Action)

Director of Hastings Voluntary Action, working to enhance the quality of life of people in the Hastings area by promoting the principle and practice of voluntary action by individuals and organised groups, and by supporting the development of local initiatives to meet community needs.

• Steve Manwaring Declaration of interest.pdf

Rich Moore (Source Park)

Co-founder of The Source Park, leading online BMX retailer worldwide and operator of The Source BMX Park, the largest underground BMX park in the world.

• Rich Moore Declaration of interest.pdf

Lourdes Madigasekera-Elliott (Public Health ESCC)

Public Health Strategic Lead for Creating Healthy Places with responsibility for getting health into place and focusing on the built and natural environment.

• Lourdes Madigasekera-Elliott Declaration of interest.pdf

Terry Hume (Public Health ESCC)

Programme Manager - Community Resilience.

• Terry Hume Declaration of interest.pdf

Matt Chetwynd (NHS Hastings And Rother Clinical Commissioning Group)

Director of Estates and Facilities - NHS East Sussex and Brighton.

• Matt Chetwynd Declaration of interest (to be uploaded)

Liz Gilmore (Cultural Leaders Group)

Chair of the Hastings and Rother Cultural Leaders group, working to support the cultural vibrancy of the area and championing the cultural sector regionally. Director of Hastings Contemporary Art Gallery, an independent gallery exploring all forms of contemporary and modern art.

• Liz Gilmore Declaration of interest.pdf

Kate Adams (Cultural Leaders Group)

Member of the Hastings and Rother and East Sussex Cultural Leaders Groups working to support the cultural vibrancy of the area and championing the cultural sector regionally. Visual artist, co-founder and director of Project Art Works, a Hastings-based arts organisation that collaborates with neurodiverse artists and makers, galleries, social care agencies, psychologists, families and caregivers.

• Kate Adams Declaration of interest.pdf

Sean Dennis (Chamber of Commerce)

Sean has worked in business and finance for over 35 years, the past 20 years based in Hastings and is Hastings Area Chamber of Commerce Director. Leading on meeting and event content, as well as the development and growth of the Chamber, to ensure the voice of the Chamber and its members is heard. 

He is the director of Let's Do Business Group and is extremely proud to have been an instrumental part of the team that has seen us grow a grant dependent Hastings and Rother focused social enterprise to a leading and sustainable business support organisation covering the South East of England.

Leading on the finance and funding side of the business which supports start-ups and established SME's access the funding they need to start, grow and prosper; which also takes our activities into London and the East of England.

Education is another area of interest, so he also sits on the Hastings Local College Board for the East Sussex College Group.

• Sean Dennis Declaration of interest.pdf

Sonia Blizzard (SeaChange)

Sea Change Sussex is a not-for-profit economic development company working to expand the area's economy and generate jobs by attracting successful employers and enabling local firms to grow. Their focus is on developing a portfolio of prestigious commercial property - offices, business parks and sites for businesses from small firms to big corporations, with many premises available on highly flexible terms.

• Sonia Blizzard Declaration of interest.pdf

Hannah Caldwell (East Sussex Colleges Group)

Chief Operating Officer for East Sussex College Group (ESCG) which includes Hastings campuses at Station Plaza, Ore Valley and an Automotive Training Centre on the Northridge Industrial Estate. ESCG provides a wide range of programmes in the town, from entry to degree level study, linking the offer to local employment and regeneration priorities.

Hannah joined ESCG in 2022 from the Department for Education and is responsible for Finance, People Services, Estates and Transformation, IT and MIS.

• Hannah Caldwell Declaration of interest (to follow)

Dawn Dublin (Un-Veiled)

Director of Un-Veiled, initiatives include community engagement, enterprise, training, support, community wealth building, knowledge and skills sharing and community cohesion.

• Dawn Dublin Declaration of interest.pdf

Francis Lucien Brown (Hastings Youth Council)

Francis has been an active member of the Hastings Youth Council for over 3 years, and was recently elected co-chair. Whilst studying humanities, he has developed a strong belief in affirmative action and is passionate about representing the views of local young people, whose voices often go unheard. Also, he works as a Peer Coach for his college, creating online content and helping students with their progression to higher education. He's looking forward to studying human geography at university with a year spent learning abroad, and aspires to work at a strategic level in an international organisation like the UN.

• Francis Lucien Brown Declaration of interest.pdf