Who works at the BMC? Full details of all current BMC staff.
Executive Officers
Paul Davies – Interim Chief Executive
Paul has spent 20+yrs in the Elite Sport world, starting as an Exercise Physiologist working for the British Olympic Association and taking a number of roles on the way to becoming Performance Director for England Netball and then for British Wheelchair Basketball. Paul now works as a Consultant, supporting sports in the development of their Strategic Plans and on their Talent Pathways and Elite Programmes. Paul has had a lifelong passion for the outdoors, having climbed both in summer and winter across many regions of the UK. More recently he’s focussed on hill walking, either with family, friends or solo.
Nick Colton – Deputy CEO, Head of Development & GB Climbing
Nick assists with the running of the BMC and is also responsible for the BMC development programmes, including child protection. He is an enthusiastic climber who has climbed 8a and has left his mark with the Colton/MacIntyre route on the Grandes Jorasses.
Access, Conservation & Environmental Sustainability
Dave Turnbull – Head of Access, Conservation & Environmental Sustainability
4.5 days per week
Dave was a BMC Access & Conservation Officer from 1997-2001, when he became the organisation’s CEO, leading the day-to-day running of the BMC until 2020. Prior to joining the BMC, Dave worked in environmental consultancy. He's a chartered surveyor, with an MSc in Marine Science. Dave is originally from Northumberland but began climbing on Dartmoor and the South West sea cliffs while a student at Plymouth Polytechnic.
Rob Dyer – Access & Conservation Officer (England)
Rob is in charge of regional access & conservation initiatives, as well as having an unequalled knowledge of access issues around the country. He's the first port of call if there's a problem somewhere with landowners, birds, military persons or anything else that shouldn't be happening.
Cath Flitcroft – Access & Conservation Officer (Policy)
Doctor Flitcroft is responsible for managing the BMC's relationship with the Government and other countryside and recreational organisations. She is often to be found lobbying hard for the rights of hill walkers, climbers and mountaineers. She leads the BMC on policy and legislation issues affecting the cliff and mountain environment, and is responsible for replying to numerous consultation documents in England and Wales. She was once a champion athlete and has, by her own admission, spent far too much time in the wilderness. Her PhD is about peat bogs.
Elfyn Jones – Access & Conservation Officer (Wales)
4 days per week
Elfyn is the BMC access & conservation officer for Wales. He is based at Capel Curig and first port of call for all access/conservation issues in Wales. Previously a Property Manager for the National Trust for Snowdonia, he has also worked for National Parks in Snowdonia and Pembrokeshire. A first language Welsh speaker from a hill farming family, he has been climbing and mountaineering all over the world since age 11.
GB Climbing
Zoe Spriggins – Competitions Programme Manager
Zoe runs all the BMC’s national and international competitions. She has worked in the industry for a good few years now and enjoys nothing better than climbing, crossfit or kiting!
Amii Wilkes – Project Co-ordinator
4 days per week
Amii supports the Competitions Officer and the Training Officer with comps related tasks and the co-ordination of our FUNdamentals courses. Amii oversees the office stationery supply. When Amii is not at the BMC you will find her bouldering either at the local climbing wall or crag.
Lucinda Whittaker – Talent Development Officer
4.25 days per week
Lucinda's role is to support talented youngsters along their journey in the climbing world, whether that be through competition or out on rock. Ex British Boulder and Lead champ and GB Team member, Lucinda has worked as a coach and teacher for the last 18 years. When time permits, Lucinda enjoys running, yoga, skiing and drinking Yorkshire tea.
Tim Cunnington – Talent Development Officer
4.25 days per week
Tim works alongside Lucinda to set up programmes to develop youth climbing.
Development
Jon Garside – BMC/MTE Training Officer
3 days per week BMC / 1.5 days per week MTE
Jon works as a link officer between the BMC and Mountain Training England, contributing to the development and quality assurance of leadership and instructional qualifications. His work includes overseeing BMC publications and events with a good practice message. In a previous life he worked at Plas y Brenin and holds the Winter Mountaineering and Rock Climbing Instructor and International Mountain Leader qualifications.
Rob Bishop – Partnerships Manager
Rob is our Partnerships Manager responsible for creating new relationships with external organisations and enhancing the relationships of our current partners. Rob brings experience from working for British Triathlon and British Orienteering, is a keen runner, sports enthusiast, athletics and netball coach.
Mariella Sullivan – Partnerships & Events Co-ordinator
Mariella works on the partnerships team as well as organising a number of events for the BMC. She also offers additional support across social media, volunteering and in the office.
Becky McGovern – Events Co-ordinator
3.5 days per week
Becky successfully manages major BMC events including the International Meet. She can usually be found either at the dinner table or clinging tenaciously to a crag somewhere.
Dan Middleton – Technical Officer also responsible for Climbing Walls
3.5 days per week
Dan provides advice and guidance about safety related mountaineering equipment. He helps the Technical Committee investigate equipment failures, and to educate climbers and mountaineers about how to use and care for their equipment. He now knows quite a lot about bolts, despite hardly ever going sport climbing.
Jane Thompson – Clubs, Huts & Volunteers Development Officer
Jane is the Clubs, Huts & Volunteers Development Officer. She works with BMC clubs to support them to grow and develop, and supports the work of the BMC Clubs' Committee and the BMC Huts Group. Jane has worked in sports development for many years, is an active member of her local mountaineering club and can even be found on rock (when it’s not raining!).
James McHaffie – Youth & Equity Officer
4 days per week
James is from the Lake District and did a lot of climbing and hill walking there before moving to North Wales to study Environmental Science in 2002. He worked for seven years at Plas Y Brenin, The National Outdoor Centre in Wales and for the last three has worked for himself and Phill George on both rock climbing courses and ML training and assessments. He has taken up the position of BMC Youth & Equity Officer to help give youngsters from urban areas more climbing and outdoor opportunities. He’s also keen to try and set up some more BMC Youth Meets.
Finance
Alan Brown – Financial Controller
Perhaps the most high pressure job in the building, but you'd never know it from looking at him. Cool, calm and collected, he gave Daniel Craig a good run for his money at the James Bond auditions. Alan works closely with Kate Anwyl to ensure data compliance.
Yas Prabaharan – Finance Assistant
Alan's trusty sidekick, and responsible for day to day management of receipts and payments, including the petty cash. She has no idea about climbing & mountaineering, but is frighteningly good at hassling people for invoices & remittances!
Hannah Skeldon – Online Shop Co-ordinator
4 days per week
Hannah manages the BMC online shop – contact her if you'd like to get your products featured in there. She likes bouldering and growing sunflowers.
HR & Office Support Services
Kate Anwyl – HR & Office Manager
Kate provides HR and office support to all the staff and is PA to the CEO. She leads on data compliance and health and safety. Prior to joining the BMC, Kate worked for the 2002 Manchester Commonwealth Games and the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Tony Ryan – Publications & Local Areas Co-ordinator
Tony's role includes the co-ordination of BMC house style on publications, as well as press and event support. He also supports the promotion of BMC area meetings and is the secretary for the National Council.
Suzanne Jones – Project Co-ordinator
3 days per week
Suzanne provides administrative support to the BMC’s HR function and also to the BMC President. She also spends time liaising with the BMC’s partners and sponsors.
Lucy Valerio – Governance & Compliance Officer
Lucy’s role includes ensuring good governance, compliance with legislation and keeping the Board of Directors in line as Company Secretary. Previous lives have included being a corporate lawyer and teaching English as a foreign language in Slovakia, Spain and Argentina. Lucy has no knowledge of mountaineering but is a keen hill walker and likes nothing more than going for a hike with her camera.
Marketing & Communications
Alex Messenger – Head of Marketing & Communications
Alex runs the Marketing and Communications crew who bring you everything from carefully crafted tweets to magnificent multi-day events. He especially likes Summit magazine and BMC TV. He is developing a weird and unexpected interest in winter climbing.
Pete Burnside – Summit Editor and Online Communications Co-ordinator
Pete is the writer extraordinaire, that is, when he isn’t reading or watching climbing stuff online. Aside from producing reams of impeccable copy, he is also known for being an avid rock climber and a scuba diving instructor, albeit preferably when in tropical seas.
Jon Chittenden – Online Marketing Co-ordinator
Jon is our digital marketing guru, inventing new and exciting ways to improve your interaction with the BMC online. He likes bouldering, live music and ale (ideally all in the same day).
Emma Travers – Marketing & Events Co-ordinator
Emma helps market our campaigns and attends BMC events making sure everything runs smoothly. In her spare time she is always looking for ways to get active and outdoors and is always looking for the best view, whether from the top of a climbing wall or a mountain peak.
Niall Grimes – Creative Content Co-Ordinator
3 days per week
Fresh from being our former Guidebook Officer (Niall was the man to praise for the world class BMC guides), Niall's now a media celebrity with no fear of either the limelight or an hilarious (but risqué) joke in front of a packed audience of dignitaries; he defies all attempts at description.
Alvin Foy – IT & Database Co-ordinator
Alvin is responsible for keeping the systems at the BMC running and maintaining the membership database. Whilst outside the office he can normally be found somewhere out in the wilderness.
Tim Waterhouse – IT & Web Support Assistant
2.5 days per week
Tim is responsible for asking people whether they have tried turning it off and on again. In his spare time he can often be found hanging (or falling) off bits of limestone in the Peak.
Membership & Insurance
Clonagh Delderfield – Membership Administrator
4 days per week
Clonagh helps with BMC Memberships, Direct Debit Schemes, Clubs and Information. She has recently had a major birthday, but refuses to say which it is. Her colleagues have decided that she doesn't look a day over 29, or maybe 39.
Jim Krawiecki – Insurance Administrator
Jim works on insurance and relishes high altitude queries. He enjoys kayaking, mountain biking, hill walking and mountaineering, as long as there's an enormous pie to look forward to at the end of the day.
Arun Patel – Membership Co-ordinator
Arun is a black belt master of the Membership Database and almost certainly knows where you live (without even looking it up).
Josh Harris – Membership Administrator
Josh helps with BMC Memberships, Direct Debit Schemes and Insurance and is the first point of contact for many of the BMC's members. He enjoys scrambling and long distance backpacking and is currently working towards his Mountain Leader Awards.
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We want to say a big thanks to every BMC member who continues to support us through the Coronavirus crisis.
From weekly Facebook Lives and GB Climbing home training videos, to our access team working to re-open the crags and fight for your mountain access, we couldn’t do it without you.
Did you know that we've just launched a new U27 membership offer for just £1 / month? And with full membership from £1.66 / month, it's never been easier to join and support our work:
https://www.thebmc.co.uk/join-the-bmc-for-1-month-U27-membership
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