Meet the Team – Board of Directors

Liz Newton

Currently chair of the Mersey Gateway Environmental Trust and with a long and varied career in the environmental sector, Liz has held senior operational and strategy positions most recently with Natural England, of which she was one of the founding Directors. She retired from Natural England in 2023, but remains connected to the sector through her voluntary roles with the Small Woods Association and Common Purpose.  While with Natural England she led Natural England’s input to the Defra 25 Year Environment plan and the renewal of NE’s own conservation strategy. With strong roots in the North she also helped set up Nature North, a partnership working to recover nature across the region.

She has degree in Environmental Sciences and in her early career worked as an applied ecologist within local authorities.

Always happier in the great outdoors, she also coaches rowing at Warrington Rowing Club and keeps fit by cycling and walking.

Professor David Norman

David is a local resident in Halton and former Director of Daresbury Laboratory. David is a Fellow of the Institute of Physics and Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology, Honorary vice president of Cheshire Wildlife Trust and President of Cheshire and Wirral Ornithological Society.

David is the Founder chairman of the Mersey Estuary Conservation Group and RECORD – Cheshire’s biological records centre. He also has served on Councils of English Nature and RSPB. Widely considered to be Cheshire’s foremost ornithologist, David is the author of Birds in Cheshire and was awarded the British Trust for Ornithology Tucker Medal.

Nikki Burton Mallott

Nikki joined the Board of Directors in February 2023. She is a conservation educator with over 12 years’ experience working in zoological collections. Most recently she has been focusing on delivering programs and research which look at the benefits of nature and green spaces to health and wellbeing. Nikki is also a community governor to 2 primary schools.

David Inman

David joined the MGET Board of Directors in May 2019. He is Director of Chartered Surveyors and Environmental Consultants DIEM Ltd, is a Fellow of RICS, a Chartered Environmental Surveyor and Chartered Environmentalist.

Working on ESG delivery projects across Europe and globally, he has over 20 years advising on environmental, energy and quality management to the private and public sectors.

David currently is a member of RICS Land and Natural Resources Professional Group Panel and is an RICS APC Assessor Chairman and auditor.

Sue Bentley MBE

Sue joined the MGET’s Board of Directors in May 2019. She is a professional web developer who has managed her own company for the last twenty one years. She is also a keen community activist with a lot of experience in organising successful events to raise awareness of a variety of social issues. Sue is involved with several charities  and is also a  Climate Change Ambassador for the Cheshire Federation of WIs. She received an MBE for her contributions to charity work.

Euan Hall

Euan Hall is a Chartered Surveyor with around 40 years experience in urban regeneration. Euan has been Director of the successful National coalfields programme which saw the restoration of over  100 Coalfields across England helping deliver new jobs, and housing and repairing damaged communities.

Subsequent to this Euan established the Land Trust in 2004 to ensure the sustainable long term management of public open space including many restored coalfields, for public benefit. The Trust currently owns over 80 public spaces across England working with local communities to deliver local benefits. the Trust has raised over 200m to help manage many of these sites. Euan has also held several non executive/Trustee roles including CL:AIRE – contaminated land- applications in real environments. A research led organisation testing new methodologies to clean up contaminated land.

Euan holds the reserve Decoration for service in the Reserve Forces .

Also on the Board is David Boyer, Andrew Darron and Cllr Stef Nelson.