Our Trustees
GrantScape is governed by a committed Board of Trustees, who collectively ensure that the Charity is run as effectively as possible.
Antony Cox – Chair
Antony is a fellow of both the Institute of Chartered Accountants and the Association of Corporate Treasurers. He has much experience of working in finance both in the charity and commercial sectors.
He retired as Director of Finance for a professional institute in April 2021. For many years he worked for a large family investment company with interests in farming, commercial property, entertainment and media as well as managing a large investment portfolio. He was manager of their associated grant making trust and in his time, gave away over £25m to good causes. He was previously trustee and treasurer of an old people’s advice charity.
Antony is also Chair of The Model Railway Club, the world’s oldest model railway according to Guinness World Records.
He joined the GrantScape Board in June 2012.
Michael Clarke
Michael is a graduate of University College, Cardiff and a Fellow of both the Institute of Management Accountants and Institute of Directors. He was Finance Director of Environmental Consultancy, ADAS Group Ltd, prior to completing the sale of the business in December 2016. From 1997 to 2005 he was Finance Director of Shanks Waste Management Ltd, a role that involved the conclusion of several PFI contracts, including the Award winning ELWA contract. He was a founding director and Chairman of Avondale Environmental Ltd and Resolved Renewables Ltd and has held Board positions in a French owned financial services business and at Hyder Consulting (UK) Ltd.
Michael has worked with leading private equity organisations on potential transactions in the environmental sector and has overseen the acquisition and integration of several waste management businesses. He has recently been engaged by two major investors to conduct pre-investment reviews.
Michael lives in Staffordshire with his wife Helen and teenage daughters, Francesca and Alexandra. He is a keen gardener and follower of Derby County.
He joined the GrantScape Board in June 2012.
Philippa Lyons
With over thirty years experience working at senior management level in the voluntary sector, Philippa has spent over twenty-three of those years within the nature conservation arena.
She has a BSc in Environmental Science from New University of Ulster and an MBA from Queens University, Belfast. She worked for Oxfam as a Fundraising Manager (1986 – 1990) and prior to that as a Lecturer at North Down Technical College for BEd classes (Business Education Council). She was also seconded to the NHS to teach first line management courses at NHS Training Centres.
After a two year spell in Denmark, Philippa joined The Berks, Bucks and Oxon Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) as Head of Marketing and Communications in Sept 1990 before being appointed Chief Executive in 2004. In March 2014 she retired from this position, and undertook consultancy work, both within the Wildlife Trusts and the wider voluntary sector, on a part-time basis.
Philippa served on the WREN board (now FCC Communities Foundation) for 10 years (2004-2014), and chaired the local Oxfordshire Advisory Panel. This not-for-profit company is the largest distributor in England of Landfill Community Fund monies, awarding grants for community, biodiversity and heritage projects .
Philippa is currently a trustee of Plantlife International and sitting on their Finance and Audit Committee. She is also a member of Oxfordshire Charity Mentors, which supports leaders of small and emerging voluntary groups and charities in the county.
She joined the GrantScape Board in January 2015.
Michael Singh
Originally from North West London, Michael has lived in Lincolnshire for more than 35 years and graduated from Nottingham Trent University with a degree in Modern European Studies before studying sustainable development at the University of East Anglia where he gained his MA. Expecting to work in sustainable development in third world he instead found himself working to protect biodiversity in the UK through his work with the Wildlife Trusts.
Michael worked alongside a number of other environmental NGOs on the then Department of the Environment’s Environmental Action Fund panel and set up a grants unit within the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts to manage Landfill Communities Fund monies for Biffa Award. This led on to him establishing grant programmes with sector partners including the Council for Environmental Education, Sustrans, the Federation of City Farms, the Bioregional Group, the Community Recycling Network, the Soil Association and the Energy Saving Trust. The consortiums he established then delivered some of the first and largest fully delegated grant programmes from the National Lottery.
After leaving his role as Executive Director of the Royal Society of Wildlife Trusts in 2004 Michael has worked as a Charity Consultant, mostly for the Wildlife Trusts but also other third sector organisations such as the National Forest Company, Wildlife and Countryside Link and the Community Forests’ Network as well as local authorities and Natural England on a range of funding and change management projects.
He joined the GrantScape Board in April 2016.
John Mills
John is a public affairs professional who has been advising companies on building effective relationships with central government and local authorities for 20 years.
After graduating from the London School of Economics with a masters degree in International Relations, John pursued several political aide roles at both Westminster and in California. On returning to the UK, he joined one of London’s leading public affairs consultancies, where he focused primarily on planning, property development and infrastructure, advising clients in their external relations and public consultation strategies.
John served for four years on the board of the Association of Professional Public Affairs Consultants, supporting its core remit in the promotion of robust industry self-regulation and professional ethics.
Subsequently, John moved in-house to become head of communications for a renewable energy developer and operator, specialising in onshore wind, where he again specialised in political and intra-industry communications and public consultation. Whilst there, he initiated a number of long-term community benefit programmes for successful development projects.
During his time in renewable energy, John was a leading member representative at the wind and marine energy representative body, RenewableUK, where he served at various times on the Onshore and External Affairs strategy Groups, and as chairman of the Public Affairs Group, helping shape the industry’s dialogue with Government on its Electricity Market Reform programme.
John has recently returned to a directorship in public affairs consultancy, primarily representing clients in development, infrastructure and high-tech industries, with particular focus recently on the Government’s Industrial Strategy Green Paper.
He joined the Board of GrantScape in March 2017.
Gillian French
Gillian has worked within the third sector for over 20 years and has first-hand experience of UK wide grants leadership and management, including delivering National Lottery, EU, Landfill Communities Fund and central government funded programmes.
Her career began in London at the Prince’s Trust where she managed a national ESF programme supporting young people in education. From there she moved back to the Midlands and spent two years managing a neighbourhood renewal programme at Mansfield District Council, working closely with community groups to improve their local areas.
In 2006 Gillian joined The Wildlife Trusts, leading the grants team to deliver national programmes including Nature Friendly Schools, Our Bright Future, Red Squirrels United and Biffa Award. One of her career highlights is playing a role in the reintroduction of beavers into Scotland, which paved the way for further reintroductions across England! Gillian has also been heavily involved in the Association of Distributive Environmental Bodies, primarily representing the views of Biffa Award before taking on the role of ADEB Chair. During her term, Gillian represented the members at regulatory meetings and on a government working group, tasked with reviewing the LCF scheme.
From here Gillian spent a couple of years at CITB developing funding strategies before moving back into the non-profit sector, where she currently works for Youth Futures Foundation as Head of Grants & Operations.
Gillian joined the GrantScape Board in November 2022.
