Robin St. Clair Jones (Chair)

Robin has spent most of his working life working in the events industry, staging conferences, product launches and roadshows for many blue-chip clients. As an event producer Robin has worked with people as diverse as Buzz Aldrin, who signed some books for his children, and Margaret Thatcher. In recent years he has been working for companies in the SME sector as a consultant and mentor, helping them to gain grants, funding from angel investors, and win various industry awards. Robin was also Chair of Judges for the annual Brighton College Entrepreneurial Competition for ten years, which he found inspiring and invigorating. Robin has spent most of his life living in the Sussex countryside with his wife and two children and has worked with various environmental groups to help mitigate overdevelopment and maintain wildlife corridors. His hobbies include astronomy, photography, gardening, films, and a love of gadgets.

Photo of Edward Brown

Edward (Ted) Brown

Ted Brown has lived on Ashdown forest for over 40 years, although a long and successful career did keep him away from his beloved Forest for a fair part of that time. As an executive, Ted rose to senior level in Rentokil Initial, the Environmental Services sector leader, an endeavour that took him around the world. Latterly as Chair of the Energy Savings Trust, he worked closely with Government at the highest level, leading a much trusted organisation that helps people reduce their energy usage at home. During this time he also served on the Boards of several other International Companies and in International trade facilitation consultancy. A keen local musician, collecting Sussex folk music, Ted now concentrates on Ashdown Forest as a Volunteer Ranger and a walker.

Ffion Thomas

Ffion Thomas was nominated to the Board of Conservators in 2021 and was appointed as Vice-Chair in July 2025. She also currently serves as Chair of the Ashdown Forest Financial and Regulatory Committee. She has over twenty years’ experience working in risk management and financial regulation, and having undertaken an MSc in Sustainable Food and Natural Resources she is currently studying for a PhD, researching the effects of soil health on the tree disease ash dieback. Ffion grew up on the beautiful island of Anglesey in North Wales which gave her a great love of wide, open landscapes and nature, and she felt very at home when she moved to live close to Ashdown Forest some 15 years ago. This also gave her the opportunity to get involved with many local initiatives to support nature and wildlife, including as one of the founders of Friends of the River Medway, as a volunteer non-executive director at the local biodynamic community supported Tablehurst farm and as a Conservator of Ashdown Forest.