Our team

Meet the people
that make it happen

We’re supported by so many fantastic people and groups,
take a look below to meet the team behind the charity.

team

Sandra King

CEO

Sandra King

CEO

Sandra supports our team delivering our strategy and leads our national policy programme, convening a coalition of stakeholders from farmers and anglers to conservationists and landowners. An experienced charity leader, innovative thinker and convener. She is a passionate environmentalist who is driven to take urgent action on the twin climate and ecological crises. Prior to joining Beaver Trust she was former Chair of Northumberland Wildlife Trust and Chief Philanthropy Officer and Deputy CEO at the largest Community Foundation in Europe, bringing philanthropists and grassroots charities together to achieve positive change.

Email:sandra@beavertrust.org

Dr Roisin Campbell-Palmer

Head of Restoration

Dr Roisin Campbell-Palmer

Head of Restoration

Roisin is a highly experienced field biologist and recognised beaver reintroduction specialist. She has authored over 25 peer-reviewed publications focusing mainly on beaver reintroduction, wildlife health screening, captive care and welfare. Roisin is also the lead author on the Eurasian beaver management handbook and completing her second book on beaver ecology, conservation and management. Roisin is highly experienced in animal trapping and handling, biological sample collection, remote monitoring techniques, field sign identification, data processing and translocation. Roisin advises various conservation projects across Britain, including conflict resolution, mitigation techniques and training. In 2020, she was recognised for her exceptional contributions and won the Conservation Scientist Award at the Nature of Scotland Awards.

Email:roisin@beavertrust.org

Eva Bishop

Head of Communications

Eva Bishop

Head of Communications

Eva leads our communications programme helping engage and inform the public and communities about river restoration and co-existing with beavers. Eva is a passionate environmentalist dedicated to climate action, conservation and wildlife resilience. She has worked on large scale renewable energy programmes for the UK, involving environmental impact assessments and community engagement, run carbon offset schemes abroad and founded a major wetland conservation and catchment restoration initiative. Most recently she has developed a climate action app and materials for schools eco initiatives.

Email:eva@beavertrust.org

Helen Scribbins

Finance Manager

Helen Scribbins

Finance Manager

Helen manages our financial planning and reporting, and supports our governance with the management team and trustees. Helen is a financial and projects manager, interested in charity and community organisation governance. She grew up in Switzerland and Kenya, developing a love for wild places and travel. Having recovered from the culture shock of England, Helen has helped a range of clients including Artspec, Taunton Women’s Aid and a renewable energy company. She is Treasurer of The Milverton Trust and Chair of Wiveliscombe Community Swimming Pool Club.

Email:helen@beavertrust.org

Robert Needham

Restoration Manager

Robert Needham

Restoration Manager

Rob helps coordinate on our Restoration projects. An experienced field biologist, he has worked with large carnivores in Norway and more recently, beaver related projects for over 10 years. He is currently at the write up stage of his PhD through the University of Southampton where he is investigating the interactions of beaver habitat modification on brown trout populations in Scotland. Rob is experienced in animal trapping and handling, survey techniques, data collection and analysis, electrofishing, PIT tag telemetry and GIS. He has also authored and co-authored peer-reviewed publications.

Email:rob@beavertrust.org

Sheelagh McAllister

Field Officer

Sheelagh McAllister

Field Officer

Brought up on her family‘s mixed working farm, Sheelagh developed passion and experience in animal welfare and conservation, before spending 7.5 years specialising in wildlife rehabilitation. Sheelagh has worked with most British mammal species including: beavers, otters, badgers, pine marten and red squirrels. She’s experienced in animal handling and trapping. Sheelagh’s expertise and experience in the field is respected throughout the UK and internationally. Her skillset is often sought in an advisory role for animal welfare and husbandry.

Email:sheelagh@beavertrust.org

Elliot McCandless

Communications Manager

Elliot McCandless

Communications Manager

Elliot manages our communications and education, engaging the public and key stakeholders on our work to restore rivers and help people to live alongside beavers again. Elliot was previously a Trustee of Scottish Wild Beaver Group before joining BT and is currently a Trustee of SCOTLAND: The Big Picture.

Email:elliot@beavertrust.org

Sophie Pavelle

Communications Coordinator

Sophie Pavelle

Communications Coordinator

Sophie coordinates our communications initiatives, producing our outreach and education content and sharing it with the public and communities. Sophie is a zoologist, author and science communicator, based in Devon. Her passion for wildlife conservation has gained her a wide reputation across the science communication and charity sector. Praised for her wit, digital creativity and audience insight, Sophie has influenced a range of nature and environment projects since graduating in 2017, often invited to keynote and chair at AGM’s, university conferences and wildlife festivals.

Email:sophie@beavertrust.org

Jolene Macnaughton

Fundraising Coordinator

Jolene Macnaughton

Fundraising Coordinator

Jolene is Beaver Trust’s new Fundraising Coordinator. This is the first time Beaver Trust has had a dedicated fundraiser and she will play a central role in growing the charity’s income to support vital restoration projects. Jolene is an experienced fundraiser, working in the charity sector for ten years across Salisbury, London and now Bedford.

Email:jolene@beavertrust.org

Alana Skilbeck

Restoration Project Officer

Alana Skilbeck

Restoration Project Officer

Alana is Beaver Trust’s new Restoration Project Officer. Alana is an experienced project administrator who helps to deliver all aspects of Beaver Trust’s restoration work. In her role she is currently developing efficient processes for project delivery, reporting and data handling across the restoration team’s work. Alana has previously worked for RSPB, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and most recently at Kent Wildlife Trust managing the Volunteer Programme. Alana has worked on a range of evidence led projects including the State of Nature in Kent 2021 report. She is passionate about making conservation and biological recording accessible to all.

Email:alana@beavertrust.org

Emily Bowen

Communications Officer

Emily Bowen

Communications Officer

Emily is our newest member of the Communications team, helping to reach new audiences and share our message. Eternally curious about the natural world and passionate about sharing wildlife and conservation stories, she believes that connecting people to nature is critical to it being given the chance to bounce back and to halt and reverse biodiversity declines. Emily joins us from Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust, where she worked on a range of projects from website development and social media to producing a book of nature reserves cared for by the Trust.

Email:emily@beavertrust.org

trustees

Alasdair Harris

Chair

Alasdair Harris

Chair

Alasdair is the founder and Executive Director of Blue Ventures Conservation. He is an advisor to the United Nations Environment Programme, an honorary fellow of the University of Edinburgh School of Geosciences, Fellow of Ashoka and TED, and is widely published in peer reviewed literature and the wider media.

Victoria Heffer

Trustee

Victoria Heffer

Trustee

Victoria is head of the institutional business at Artemis Investment Management LLP. As a trustee of the Artemis Charitable Foundation, she significantly increased grant making to environmental causes. She is a committed environmentalist and enjoys putting this into practice on a hill farm in the Black Mountains. She is a trustee of food poverty charity, City Harvest.

Jenny Scholfield

Trustee

Jenny Scholfield

Trustee

Jenny has worked for over twenty years in nature conservation in the UK, with extensive experience of government agencies, local government and environmental charities. She is currently a regional director at the Woodland Trust, with a focus on leading an operational team and always focused on outcomes for nature.

Keith Shepherd

Trustee

Keith Shepherd

Trustee

Keith is an accountant, who has worked in investment management for large private, public and third sector funds, where he was a keen advocate of responsible investing. He is now a trustee of two grant-giving foundations, John Ellerman Foundation and Dunhill Medical Trust, where he focuses on environmental and financial issues.

Nicky Saunter

Trustee

Nicky Saunter

Trustee

Nicky supported setting up the charity and continues to advise on our strategy, programmes and fundraising. Nicky is a social entrepreneur and environmental campaigner with a particular interest in business ethics, wildlife and the rural economy. She lives in Somerset on a permaculture plot that has been undergoing re-wilding for over a decade. She runs Learning From The Land, a sustainable business consultancy, and co-founded the west country coffee chain The Boston Tea Party and the natural acoustics firm The Woolly Shepherd.

Matthew Brady

Trustee

Matthew Brady

Trustee

Matt coordinates the accounting and administration of global programs for Doctors Without Borders (Médecins Sans Frontières), based in Amsterdam. His professional focus bringing finance and technology expertise to non-profits includes years of enriching field work across Africa and India. Matt is also a former music artist with Atlantic Records in New York.

Ambassadors

Mya-Rose Craig

Naturalist, campaigner and blogger

Mya-Rose Craig

Naturalist, campaigner and blogger

Mya-Rose Craig (aka: Birdgirl) is an 18-year-old British Bangladeshi conservationist, environmentalist, writer, speaker, race activist and diversity expert. She is youngest person to have seen half of the world’s bird species and os the founder of pioneering equality/diversity project Black to Nature.

Megan McCubbin

Zoologist and TV presenter

Megan McCubbin

Zoologist and TV presenter

Megan is a zoologist and wildlife TV presenter. She joined the Springwatch team in 2020 and is soon to publish her debut book called ‘Back To Nature,’ in which she hopes to encourage a new generation of nature lovers to connect with the wonders of the natural world.

Sean McCormack

Veterinarian and presenter

Sean McCormack

Veterinarian and presenter

Sean is a veterinarian, conservationist and presenter with a lifelong passion for nature and wildlife. He runs Ealing Wildlife Group, a community conservation group in West London who are collaborating on the first truly urban reintroduction of beavers to London. He also hosts his own podcast, Sean's Wild Life, exploring issues around rewilding, food production and traditional nature conservation.

Polly Pullar

Naturalist, writer, photographer and wildlife rehabilitator

Polly Pullar

Naturalist, writer, photographer and wildlife rehabilitator

Polly Pullar is a naturalist, writer, photographer and wildlife rehabilitator with over 35 years professional experience specialising in wildlife and countryside matters. She is the author of ten books, including – Fauna Scotica, Animals People in Scotland; A Richness of Martens – Wildlife Tales from the Highlands; The Red Squirrel – A Future in the Forest; A Scurry of Squirrels – Nurturing the Wild; The Horizontal Oak – A Life in Nature.

Maddie Moate

Presenter, YouTuber and children's author

Maddie Moate

Presenter, YouTuber and children's author

Maddie is an award winning presenter, YouTuber and children's author, best known for presenting the CBeebies science series Maddie's Do You Know? On her own YouTube channel, Maddie has been creating fun educational videos for the past ten years in the hope of encouraging a new audience to stay curious, adventurous and a love for the natural world. Her first book "Stuff", is full of mind-bursting facts and extraordinary stories of the ingenious ways people around the world, and across history, have made, used and reused the stuff around them, inspiring a curiosity and sense of wonder about a more sustainable future.

Our team

Meet the people
that make it happen

team

Sandra King

Dr Roisin Campbell-Palmer

Eva Bishop

Helen Scribbins

Robert Needham

Sheelagh McAllister

Elliot McCandless

Sophie Pavelle

Jolene Macnaughton

Alana Skilbeck

Emily Bowen

trustees

Alasdair Harris

Victoria Heffer

Jenny Scholfield

Keith Shepherd

Nicky Saunter

Matthew Brady

Ambassadors

Mya-Rose Craig

Megan McCubbin

Sean McCormack

Polly Pullar

Maddie Moate

Stay up to date
with beavers

Connect with us

Our team

Meet the people that make it happen

team

trustees

Ambassadors

Stay up to date with beavers

Connect with us

Meet the people
that make it happen

Stay up to date
with beavers