The leadership team

Dr Linda Yueh CBE is Fellow in Economics at St Edmund Hall, University of Oxford, and Adjunct Professor of Economics at London Business School. She was appointed CBE for services to economics.

She is a member of the English Law Promotion Panel and the UK Soft Power Council, a non-executive director of the Independent Football Regulator, chairs The Schiehallion Fund, and serves as a non-executive director of other public and private companies. She is also a trustee of the Fidelity UK and International Foundations.

Dr Yueh was previously Executive Chair of the Royal Commonwealth Society and a board member of London & Partners, London’s growth agency, including during the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Image credit: Kean Wong

Aurora serves on The Royal Parks’ Investment Committee, on the HR Committee and on The Regent’s Park Store Yard Programme Board.

She is an award-winning arts documentary filmmaker who, as Aurora Gunn, spent many years working on The South Bank Show for ITV and Sky.

Aurora has over 20 years of experience managing an historic landscape, with a focus on income diversification and sustainability, having overseen the running of the Glenarm Castle estate in Northern Ireland.  Her horticultural experience includes the complete restoration and replanting of an historic walled garden which won, by public vote, the Historic Houses Garden of the Year Award in 2023.

Harris is a social entrepreneur, public engagement advisor and chartered accountant. His wide range of roles include serving on the Board of the Natural History Museum, the Prince’s Trust Mosaic Initiative and he is an ambassador for the British Asian Trust.

Harris founded Patchwork Foundation in 2010 to promote the political and democratic engagement of under-represented communities. He is an Independent Member of the Queen’s Award for Voluntary Service Committee, and an Independent Member of the Community and Voluntary Service Honours Committee.

Harris was awarded an OBE in Her Majesty's 2015 Birthday Honours List for services to young people and interfaith relations; named as one of London's most influential figures by the Evening Standard's Progress 1000 List; and awarded Imperial College’s inaugural Distinguished Alumni.

Michael has over 30 years' experience in the financial services industry holding a number of senior roles at multi-national corporations. An experienced senior leader in Global Markets/Investment Banking and Custody Operations with specific focus on front office trading and back office operations, operational risk management, governance, regulatory engagement, balance sheet review/growth wind down programs, establishment of new operating teams in alternative locations, and large scale strategic change management projects.

He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in cross-cultural communications and a Master of Arts degree in organizational management from Trevecca Nazarene University. Michael is also a certified business coach from the Meyler Campbell Mastered program. He is a board member of the Association for Financial Markets in Europe (AFME). Prior to joining State Street, Michael worked at Bankers Trust, Deutsche Bank and Westdeutsche Landesbank. Currently, Michael is the UK Country Head for State Street and the UK Head of State Street Global Markets and is based in London.

Councillor Adam Hug has served on Westminster City Council as the member for Westbourne Ward since 2010. He became Leader of the Opposition in 2015 and then Leader of the Council following the elections in May 2022. He currently sits on the Board of Trustees of the Foreign Policy Centre, a human rights focused international affairs think tank of which he served as Executive Director from 2017 to 2022.

Jane is chairman of The Royal Parks’ Audit and Risk Committee and has been a trustee since August 2021.

She is a chartered accountant and former partner in KPMG UK, with 20 years experience of complex financial and operational restructuring, performance improvement and turnaround. She has worked in a vast range of businesses in manufacturing, defence, consumer, retail, insurance and banking – from the very large, and global, to the very small. She has also supported multiple public sector entities undergoing change.

Ed is the Comptroller of the Lord Chamberlain’s Office in the Royal Household. His team are responsible for all ceremonial activities attended by The King including major state occasions such as the State Opening of Parliament and international State Visits. Ed joined the Royal Household in July 2025 following a 24-year career in the Army. During his early career he served in the Welsh Guards before later transferring to command 1st Battalion Coldstream Guards in 2018.

Councillor Anthony Okereke is the first Black Leader of the Royal Borough of Greenwich. He previously served as Cabinet Member for Housing and has represented Woolwich Common, where he still lives and grew up, since 2018.

His priorities as Council Leader have been the cost-of-living crisis, climate emergency and health inequalities. As a trustee of the Royal Parks, Cllr Okereke will be committed to preserving Royal Greenwich's unique heritage and historical sites, as well as its green spaces. He believes that we must prioritise delivering high quality, accessible parks and green spaces to residents, so that every community can experience the physical, mental and social benefits they offer.

When he’s not in a council meeting or being a family carer for his father, he can be found running along the Thames Path, supporting Charlton Athletic (of course) or enjoying some fish and chips in Beresford Square.

He has a degree in Civil Engineering and is reading a Masters in Urban and Regional Planning.

Lorna Parker conducts Board Effectiveness reviews for UK public companies as an Advisory Partner at Manchester Square Partners. She is a Non-Executive Director of PAI Partners.

She was a Trustee of the Royal Horticultural Society (Chair of Nominations, Appointments and Governance Committee and member of Commercial Board) for 10 years until July 2024. In December 2025, she retired as a Trustee and Vice Chair of the National Opera Studio where she chaired the Finance Committee. She was previously a Non-Executive Director of Indivior plc; a Senior Advisor at CVC Capital Partners; and a Director of Future Academies.

Lorna’s executive career was primarily in executive search, as a partner at Spencer Stuart, where she led their private equity practice across Europe, co-led the legal search practice, was a member of the UK Board practice and was the UK Managing Partner.

Councillor Gareth Roberts has served on Richmond Council as a Liberal Democrat councillor since 2010 and in 2015 became leader of the Opposition Group on the Council. In 2018, following the change of administration, he was elected as Leader of the Council.

Gareth represents Hampton on Richmond Council, a ward which covers a sizeable part of Bushy Park.

Justine has driven the cultural transformation of London for two decades. She was awarded an OBE in 2015 for Services to Culture in London. An influential voice on the global stage, she founded the World Cities Culture Forum – a leadership network of 50 global cities. She led the capital’s biggest ever festival for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games with over 5,000 events. She is now overseeing its legacy, East Bank in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, a ?1 billion culture and education district.

Justine has shaped the capital’s investment strategy for film, fashion, games and design. She established the Fourth Plinth as a global exemplar and co-chaired London’s Commission for Diversity in the Public Realm. She has designed major policy firsts: Creative Enterprise Zones, the Cultural Infrastructure Plan and the London Borough of Culture, taking culture to venues, public spaces and parks across the capital.

Ruth Willmott is an award-winning landscape designer and experienced charity trustee with a strong commitment to the stewardship of historic landscapes, public parks and nature based spaces. She brings more than 15 years’ experience in landscape and horticultural design, working across heritage, conservation and publicly accessible settings, alongside significant board-level leadership.

Since 2019 she has served as a Trustee and Council Member of the Royal Horticultural Society and is currently Chair of its Governance and People Committee, where she has led a full programme of governance reform and strengthened board effectiveness and diversity. She also contributes to strategic and financial oversight through her roles on the Finance and Commercial Board and Audit and Risk Committee, supporting major capital investment programmes across the charity’s gardens and Estate.

Image credit: Richard Bloom

Andrew has been Chief Executive since June 2015. As part of this role he is also a Commissioner of the Crown Estates Paving Commission, and a member of the Exhibition Road Cultural Group, and Film London Executive Task Force. Previously he held roles at Ofcom, Department for Culture, Media and Sport and the Foreign Office. He worked on the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics for 10 years. Earlier in his career he was Private Secretary to the Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport.

Vanessa joined The Royal Parks as General Counsel in August 2025. She is an experienced legal and governance leader with a successful track record in senior roles across international publicly listed and private equity–owned companies of scale and complexity.

Before joining The Royal Parks, Vanessa served as Group General Counsel and Company Secretary at IVC Evidensia, a global leader in veterinary care, and previously at Serco UK and Europe. Vanessa’s first general counsel and company secretary role was at Wolseley UK, after a progression of senior roles at AstraZeneca. She has extensive experience leading Legal, Risk, Compliance and Company Secretarial functions, guiding organisations through transformation, acquisitions, and governance change.

Recognised for her collaborative and commercial approach, Vanessa is a strong advocate for diversity, equity and inclusion, and ESG. Outside of work, she is passionate about nature and the environment—values that align closely with the mission of The Royal Parks. Vanessa is also an independent member of the University of Plymouth Board of Governors.

Julia joined the Royal Parks in June 2022 after 11 years working as the Chief Financial Officer and Company Secretary of the Financial Ombudsman Service. During her time there she delivered new funding solutions which supported the rapid growth in the organisation and also provided sufficient reserves for the longer term transformation programme that followed. Most recently she was joint sponsor for the implementation of a new people and finance system designed to consolidate systems and improve people processes. Prior to the Ombudsman Service she held a number of finance roles at Serco, the support services group, including a period of time as the Group Company Secretary. She qualified as an accountant with Deloitte in London.

Lucy joined the Royal Parks in January 2025, after six years leading various teams at social housing organisation RHP. Lucy’s passion is about showing how delivering great culture and people engagement, can deliver excellent business performance and customer service. She is a CIPD Fellow and has worked leading business change at Director level within the not-for-profit sector. She has worked in main charities such as the Royal Horticultural Society and the Cystic Fibrosis Trust, plus in the professional sector at Grant Thornton. Lucy has also undertaken several voluntary positions as is currently a Trustee of OneRichmond and a Non-Executive Director for Teacher’s Housing Association.

Ali joined The Royal Parks in February 2020, after nine years as Director of Marketing and Communications for the NSPCC. During her time there, she delivered a number of award-winning behaviour change and political campaigns, rebranded NSPCC and Childline, led on digital transformation projects and was accountable for income across individual giving, legacy and face to face fundraising. Prior to this, she held a number of Director roles including BBC Studios, a global producer and distributor of TV, film and digital content , where she was responsible for all internal and external communications across Europe, the US, Asia and Australia.

Bidisha joined The Royal Parks in December 2022 after 20 years in policing and national security. She was an Executive Director at the Metropolitan Police Service for four years, specialising in leading complex change and transformation. During that time, she was a Senior Responsible Owner for the next generation of HR, Finance and Commercial outsourcing. Prior to this, she was the Director of Operational Support Services leading a critical department of over 1,000 staff delivering essential services necessary to keep the front line moving. Bidisha has also worked at a national level leading change at the National Counter Terrorism Policing Headquarters for 5 years until 2018, and on secondment to Government for 4 years working on the security of the Olympic and Paralympic Games in 2012.

Darren joined The Royal Parks in January 2024 after working for Birmingham City Council for 38 years. Darren started as an apprentice gardener and progressed to work in all sections of Birmingham’s Parks Service. Over the last 25 years, Darren has worked with communities to deliver positive benefits of parks in an urban environment. Darren led all of Birmingham’s ‘In Bloom’ entries, and from 2011 designed and led Birmingham’s entry to the RHS Chelsea Flower Show.  

Darren is also a Trustee for the Royal Horticultural Society and a national ‘Britain in Bloom’ judge.

Darren joined The Royal Parks in October 2018 after 15 years working as a consultant Project Manager for Rider Levett Bucknall, a leading property and construction consultancy. During his time there he worked in partnership with The Royal Parks, delivering several high-profile Parks projects, including The LookOut education centre in Hyde Park, the Hyde Park Super Nursery and the restoration of the Henry Moore Arch in Kensington Gardens. A Chartered Engineer, Darren began his career with a degree in Engineering on a Ministry of Defence sponsorship, specialising in procurement and project management on various multimillion pound Navy projects, representing the MoD, including a posting on HMS Invincible during the Persian Gulf Conflict in 1999.

Alun joined The Royal Parks in 2012 as part of the team delivering the London 2012 Olympic Games. Since then, he has become a senior operational leader and key driver of commercial innovation across the organisation, playing a central role in the significant growth of the charity’s commercial income. As Head of Events and Filming, Alun led the delivery of major cultural programmes and high‑profile public events that attract millions of visitors each year and provide vital funding for the parks.

Now as Commercial Director, he oversees The Royal Parks’ commercial strategy and partnerships, ensuring sustainable revenue generation while balancing public access, heritage protection and the charity’s long‑term objectives.

Alun holds the Member of the Royal Victorian Order (MVO), awarded for his contribution to cultural services and to iconic moments in Britain’s history.