Our Trustees and Staff

John Goodridge

Chair

John Goodridge has had a career in finance in London, working for investment banks and hedge funds. He lives in Waverley, close to the big natural areas of the Hindhead Commons and the Devil’s Punch Bowl, Thursley Common and Hankley Common, where he often walks the family dogs. He is also a keen road cyclist across Surrey, Sussex and Hampshire.

It was John’s experience of living in this beautiful corner of Surrey, walking and cycling in its stunning countryside, that led him to volunteer for CPRE Surrey. John is concerned that the government drive to build will result in the loss of more land from the Green Belt and Surrey Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. He joined the board of CPRE Surrey in 2020 as Treasurer, and became Chair at AGM 2022.

Matt Mallinder

Vice-Chair

Living in Haslemere, with two young boys and two young dogs – both pairs needing regular running, allows Matt to enjoy the wellbeing benefits and closeness to nature on his regular local sorties into the Surrey Hills. Being an avid cyclist both off and on road allows him to roam further afield on the tracks less travelled to see the broad expanse, beauty and uniqueness of the Surrey countryside.

Last summer’s lockdown really allowed people to re-engage with what is on their doorstep, to value the countryside and contemplate lifestyle choices; but it’s important to recognise that this in turn brings both threats and opportunities in the way that land and space is managed in Surrey as the county looks to ‘build back better’.
Matt recently joined CPRE Surrey as a Trustee bringing 25 years background in governance, fundraising and advocacy in transport charities. He is currently the Director of Influence and Engagement Cycling UK, the national cycling charity which inspires and helps people to cycle and keep cycling.

The influence bit of the role means leading the charity’s advocacy work in making the case to governments, local authorities, businesses and decision makers to invest in cycling to realise the wider societal benefits of cycling beyond just transport. Engagement is ‘selling’ cycling to new audiences to grow the number of regular cyclists through UK wide programmes such as National Bike Week and the Women’s Festival of Cycling. Skills that he looks forward to bringing in to CPRE, especially as how we design transport choices into planning influences where and how we live locally.

David Allen

Treasurer

David Allen is a chartered accountant who was a partner in PricewaterhouseCoopers for over 20 years. Since retiring from PwC he has been undertaking a range of voluntary roles, including being a member of the work party at the RSPB Pulborough Brooks bird reserve, and being a School Governor. He was born and brought up in the Surrey countryside and has lived outside Guildford on the edge of the Surrey Hills AONB since 1979. He has been a member of CPRE for longer than he can remember, and an email to members saying that we were looking for a new Treasurer sparked his interest and prompted his latest role.

David walks and runs regularly with his dog on Blackheath and occasionally finds time to do a bit of birdwatching and bird photography there as well. His favourite local bird is the Dartford Warbler which died out on Blackheath after a series of very cold winters a few years ago but now is thankfully thriving again. David is married, with three children and five grandchildren.

Jennet Eyre

Trustee

Spending much of her early childhood in Wales, Jennet was introduced to the glory of Welsh mountain walking and countryside. On moving to Waverley as a teenager, she spent weekends orienteering on Hankley Common, the Devil’s Punchbowl and other green spaces in Surrey and became aware of the importance of the Surrey Hills for exercise, nature and wellbeing for all.

After a legal career in the City she now spends time walking, cycling and volunteering in Surrey (as well as looking after a wood in Islington) and is focused on protecting local green spaces and heritage from their many challenges, for the benefit of people and nature. Jennet has recently spearheaded a successful Walking for Wellness scheme with GPs in London, and is keen to support CPRE’s “Nature for Wellbeing and Health” initiative.

Jennet became a Trustee at AGM 2022

Tim Murphy

Trustee

Tim has degrees in Philosophy, Politics & Economics and in Town & Regional Planning. A Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and former member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and the Institution of Environmental Sciences, Tim worked as Senior Planning Assistant at the London Borough of Hackney, 1970-74, Project Manager and then Director of the Environment Department at WS Atkins, consulting engineers, 1974-1991, Director of the Environmental Assessment Department of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, 1991-2001.

A CPRE Surrey member for more than 20 years, Tim served as chair of trustees for seven years, having first joined the board in 2006. He is currently chair of our local group in Epsom & Ewell and vice-chair of both CPRE Surrey and CPRE South East.

Keith Tothill

Trustee

Keith retired after a long career as a professional town planner. His degree (from Durham University) was in Geography, which has enabled him to understand the complex and often contradictory relationships between the environment and all aspects of development. An active CPRE member since 2005, a trustee since 2011, and one of CPRE Surrey’s planning advisers on our executive team, Keith’s main areas of expertise are the Green Belt, countryside and housing matters, although his interests range over most aspects of the environment. Although retired, he has kept abreast of the many changes in all aspects of town planning.

Gillian Hein

Trustee

Now retired, Gillian worked as a professional planner in the North of England, Canada, and latterly in two London boroughs. Experience has been both on planning policy and development management. Her qualifications include degrees in geography and project management and diplomas in planning and landscape architecture.

A longstanding active member of CPRE Surrey, Gillian is one of our planning advisers, a key member of our executive team, and also serves as the chair of our local group in Reigate & Banstead. Her main interests are ecology and landscape planning, and in addition to her CPRE roles she is also actively involved with the Tadworth & Walton Residents’ Association. Gillian’s hobbies include walking and painting with an emphasis on watercolour and pastel landscapes.

Jeremy Saunders

Volunteer Coordinator

After over 30 years working in magazines and media Jeremy decided to retrain to pursue a lifelong ambition of working in the countryside. Having grown up on a farm and always been a lover of the great outdoors he had a ‘road to Damascus’ moment when he saw a job ad for a Countryside Ranger. With the support of his wife he retrained at Plumpton College, near Lewes studying Countryside & Wildlife Management and now works as a Ranger for the National Trust, at Limpsfield Common, near Oxted.

He is passionate about preserving our green spaces and is working on regenerating areas of heathland at Limpsfield. He is also a huge lover of chalk grassland, another rapidly diminishing habitat and one that Surrey is blessed with in a number of sites.

In his spare ​time, he is a keen dog walker, and loves metal detecting and mudlarking on the banks of the Thames.

Andy Smith

Consultant

Andy is a longstanding CPRE activist who started as a local volunteer in Surrey in 1993, becoming Branch Director in 2009, a position he held until 2021. He recently returned to an active role with the charity. In addition to his CPRE activities, Andy is secretary of the London Green Belt Council, and in May 2024 was elected as an Independent member of Mole Valley District Council.

A journalist by profession, Andy is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society and a Life Fellow (and Past-President) of the Chartered Institute of Journalists. He is a trustee of several charities including the Betjeman Society which celebrates the life and works of the poet, writer, broadcaster and conservationist Sir John Betjeman.