Meet our Trustees

FELICITY IRWIN DL, CHAIR

Felicity has many years experience within the community; in education as a Governor of Dumpton, Poole Grammar School and Bournemouth University, in media and the arts as Regional Executive of TVS (Television South), in commerce as Chairman of The Wessex Institute of Directors, in heritage as a Founding Director and fundraiser for The Vulcan to the Sky Restoration, in community as a JP and fundraiser and Chairman of a number of charities in Dorset most recently retiring after 20 years as Chairman of Care South and has been a Deputy Lieutenant of Dorset for 25 years. She believes that the preservation of the heritage of Poole and sharing it with its community is vital.  

PETER DOBSON

"I was born in Bournemouth and have lived in this area all my life. After prep school at Hailey and boarding school in Somerset I was accepted by Hamble, jointly owned by BEA and BOAC, for training as a pilot. Remember those airlines! After thirty-five years service, initially with BOAC and latterly British Airways, I retired as a  747-400 ‘Jumbo Jet’ Captain in 2001.

I have always taken a keen interest in the history of the local area. My interest in the museum was reignited when attending the unveiling of a Blue Plaque commemorating the founding of BOAC on 1st April 1940. The present museum was the original BOAC Operational Headquarters. 

I continue to take a keen interest in local events and if the National Lottery Heritage Funded project  comes to fruition a bright future beckons for our museum."

PETER BURT

“I have been interested in history since I was a small boy and enjoyed watching and talking to Sir Mortimer Wheeler when he was digging at Corfe Castle in the 1950s.
I have been involved in the world of boats since before I can remember. I’ve logged over 42,000 miles under sail and power, mostly cruising in the English Channel, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean and East Coast of the USA.
I have been involved in the local community of Poole since I was 19. I bought and ran Arthur Bray Ltd, for over 40 years, built and ran the Aquarium on Poole Quay in the late 1970s. I was Commodore of the Royal Motor Yacht Club 1995-97, created the Poole Harbour Watch, (a neighbourhood watch afloat), with the help of the marine police, in 1996, and I served as a Poole Lifeboat shore crewman for 14 years and Chairman for 3 years. I became a Poole Harbour Commissioner for 12 years in 1998. I was Chairman of Poole Maritime Trust from 2012 until 2017 and am currently a Vice President of the Trust. I am now able to give more time to History, its presentation to the public and its long-term preservation. “History begins yesterday”.

DR. JOANNA KENNEDY OBE FREng

Joanna is a civil engineer and project manager who has advised clients on and led the successful delivery of numerous major construction projects. She was a director and the global leader for programme and project management with Arup, where her projects included the Horniman Museum, the National Maritime Museum Cornwall, the Francis Crick Institute and the Defence and National Rehabilitation Centre.

Joanna was deputy chair of Trustees at the National Portrait Galler

PROFESSOR PAUL GOUGH
PhD MA RCA BA (Hons.) FRSA RWA

Paul is Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Arts University Bournemouth, UK.
A painter, broadcaster and author he has exhibited internationally and is represented in the permanent collection of the Imperial War Museum, London, the Canadian War Museum, Ottawa, and the National War Memorial, New Zealand. Along with leading roles in international higher education and global research assessment, his research into the representation war and peace has b

TIM INGRAM

After a career in international banking, living and working around the world, Tim became Chief Executive of Caledonia Investments, a UK-listed investment company.  Since retiring from executive life, Tim has been a non-executive and a chair of a number of companies, covering a wide range of sectors and geographies. Tim set up and chaired Fulham Palace Trust for 7 years, which now manages & operates the former Palace of the Bishop of London, its museum and the gardens and grounds.