Meet the team

Tom has lived in Hampshire for decades and his love of history, heritage and the arts has led him to serve as Chair of Wessex Archaeology, the Imperial War Museum Development Trust, and Leeds Castle Enterprises, and as a Trustee for the National Museum of the Royal Navy in Portsmouth and The UK Antarctic Heritage Trust. He was previously CEO of Visit Britain and has a commercial background as Managing Director of Saga Holidays and a Director of Center Parcs. Tom also spent over 10 years as a Trustee of the Royal Green Jackets Museum in Winchester and was on the organising committee for Waterloo 200.

Emma Back is a former Senior Civil Servant, having worked in various leadership and management roles at the Department for International Development, Department of Health and on secondment to the NHS. She is currently a consultant and lecturer in international development and global health, alongside her role as Chief Executive of the Winchester Sport Art and Leisure Trust.

Emma’s experience includes policymaking, programme management and organisational development and she has a strong interest in social impact, community engagement, diversity and sustainability. Emma holds an undergraduate degree from the University of Oxford and postgraduate degrees from the School of Oriental and African Studies, and Birkbeck, University of London.

Anna has a passion for creating diverse, hands-on-learning opportunities and is a dedicated believer in accessible and family friendly creative and cultural experiences for all children. Anna has worked in the creative and cultural sector since graduating from Winchester School of Art, specialising in the design and implementation of art programmes within education settings, holding positions for the Creative Partnerships Programme, Heritage Lottery Fund and Regent High School.

Most recently, Anna has turned her focus towards the youngest in our community, retraining as an early years educator and opening Mimosa Montessori, an early years setting and Art Camp provider in Winchester.

A Business and Psychology graduate, Mark spent his career as a Management Consultant specialising in the public sector.  Employed for 26 years by PA Consulting, one of the largest providers of consulting services to government, Mark was a partner in the firm for 14 years and Global Head of Government Consulting for his final six years. Mark is a commercial specialist and has provided advice on a number of major government programmes including those for the UK Passport, the contracts for Smart Metering in Great Britain, the Dartford Crossing and National Savings and Investments.

He has been a trustee since 2014 (and chair since 2019) of a small charity which aims to provide economic and educational benefit by funding a boys' home in the Indian Himalya.

A lifelong Hampshire resident, he is a keen cyclist who rides a tandem with his wife. They enjoy attending Jazz and Folk gigs and have a strong interest in local history sparked by restoring an old house.  They and their two offspring are season ticket holders at Southampton Football Club. 

Karen has over 35 years’ experience of working in the voluntary sector, managing infrastructure and direct delivery, and is currently Head of Volunteering at a London based charity,

She spent six years as a trustee of Greater London Volunteering (now LondonPlus) and co-chairs the London Volunteer Centre Network Group. Karen is recognised as a leader within the volunteering community in London. Since moving to Hampshire, she is looking forward to exploring new ways of connecting people and projects.

Jim Croxford is an experienced IT professional and has over 35 years’ consulting and project management experience in the retail, airline and professional services industries.

Jim is currently Head of Student Systems at the University of Southampton and has previously worked for established companies including Lloyd's Register, IBM, American Airlines and Neiman-Marcus. He is a keen gardener, and currently lives in Winchester with his husband Matthew and their Patterdale Terrier Buddy.

Chris has represented Andover West on Hampshire County Council since 2021 and has served as a member of Test Valley Borough Council since 2019. He holds degrees in Law and Criminology and was called to the Bar of England and Wales in 2008.

Before moving to Hampshire, Chris was a policy officer in Local Government and at Citizens Advice. He currently works for the Rugby Football Union in community engagement, which involves outreach work to schools, community groups, local government and individuals.

Having a keen interest in history, Chris has been chairman of a railway heritage trust in Scotland since 2019 and has experience in engaging and motivating volunteers and budgets.

Hugh was previously an audit partner of PricewaterhouseCoopers in the UK and Middle East. Hugh has lived in Winchester with his wife and family for around 25 years and has been a regular visitor to the Trust's venues. He is currently also a Trustee and the Treasurer for Winchester Action on Climate Change.

Claire is a commercially focused senior HR professional, with specialist experience in the design and delivery of major transformation programmes. Her 30 year+ career was predominately in the IT sector, working for Siemens, Nixdorf, Xansa (now Sopra Steria) and Unisys. Claire was previously a trustee of the Prior's Court Foundation and the Royal School of Needlework.

Claire lives in Hampshire and is passionate about local history and the arts.

Lucille Thompson is a member of Cabinet at Winchester City Council with responsibility for Business and Culture. A former Leader of the City Council she has extensive Local Government experience both in London where she served as a councillor on the London Borough of Waltham Forest and then in Buckhurst Hill Essex where she helped set up and became a member of the newly formed Parish Council.  She moved to Winchester in 2005.

The first five years of her working life was spent at the BBC in an administrative role supporting the Head of the BBC’s Light Orchestras.   She then went on to spend ten years in Parliament working for various Liberal Democrat MPs, gaining valuable knowledge of the Parliamentary system.  A move to a Public Affairs Consultancy followed where she was responsible for a number of broad ranging clients.

Lucille has a passion for textiles and design, is a member of the V & A and a frequent visitor to the Fashion Museum in Bath and the Fashion and Textile Museum in London.

James is an experienced fundraiser, having held senior positions at the Samaritans and Amnesty International. James lives in Aldershot with his wife and family and prior to joining Hampshire Culture Trust, was already a regular visitor to our venues; in particular the West End Centre where he met and successfully proposed to his wife!

James currently works at the South Downs National Park Authority where he is Head of Income Generation and Marketing.