Meet the Trustees

Michael has been deeply involved with The Scouts since joining his local Beaver Colony at the age of 9. Over the years, he has taken on numerous roles within the movement, both at a local level in Salford and on a national scale. His notable contributions include serving as the Chair of The National Awards Advisory Group and being a member of the National Board of Trustees from 2012 to 2015. Additionally, Michael was a trustee for the Greater Manchester West (GMW) Scouts for 9 years. His leadership roles within the Scouts include being a Cub Leader, ADC Cubs in Salford, and the GMW Top Awards Coordinator, where he supported higher awards. Professionally, Michael works as the Assistant Headteacher for Outreach, Partnership and Service at The Manchester Grammar School. He is also an experienced Mountain Leader, with a passion for hill-walking, mountaineering and trekking. Beyond his commitments to Scouting and his professional career, Michael contributes to the community as a Magistrate in Greater Manchester and serves as a Deputy Lieutenant for Greater Manchester. Furthermore, he is a Trustee for The Bond Board, an organisation dedicated to reducing homelessness by securing private sector housing for people with low incomes.

Dave has been a member of The Scouts since the age of six. He started his adult leadership journey as Assistant Scout Leader at 1st Over St Johns in Winsford, shortly after gaining his Queen’s Scout Award. He was appointed as Assistant County Commissioner (Scouts) in 2007, having volunteered on the National Scout section support team since 2004. In 2011 he became Deputy County Commissioner, before being appointed as County Commissioner (Lead Volunteer) in 2021. Dave has been instrumental in driving youth engagement in Cheshire and was a Cheshire Unit Leader to the World Scout Jamboree in Japan. Professionally, Dave is Assistant Principal Student Experience for Stoke on Trent College. Outside of work and Scouts, you can find Dave running, walking, spending time with his family and friends, as well as skiing and travelling.

Dan is an Economics Student at the University of Bath, but home will always be Chester. He started his scouting experience 13 years ago and has enjoyed every opportunity scouting has offered him, including two World Scout Jamborees, multiple Gang Shows and many Cheshire Hikes. Dan has been a Beaver Leader, a Young Leader at Cubs and was Deputy District Youth Commissioner for Chester & District. He wants all young people in Cheshire Scouts to be able to say they shaped their own adventure! Outside of studying and scouting, Dan loves to play badminton, works as a waiter, and has a real passion for winter sports. It’s rare you don’t hear about his time as a chalet host in the French alps.

Luke trained as a Chartered Accountant with EY, spending five years working primarily with Energy & Construction companies from their Aberdeen and London offices.  He has worked with a range of organisations from FTSE 100 companies to early stage startups on a variety of projects relating to finance and accounting.  He’s currently studying his MBA at Harvard Business School. As a young person, he achieved his Queen’s Scout Award, Explorer Belt Award and attended the World Scout Jamboree in Sweden.  Aged 21 he joined the Board of the British Youth Council, where he was treasurer for four years.  In that role he led on financial matters for the organisation which employed 18 employed members of staff and delivered programs including the UK Youth Parliament, NHS Youth Forum and Bank of England Youth Forum.

Proposed by: Dave Hopley

Seconded by: Peter Mather and Val Thomason

Philip is the Chief Executive of Enterprise Cheshire and Warrington, prior to which he was a senior civil servant for the Department for Communities and Local Government. Prior to moving to Cheshire Philip was actively involved in Scouting in Horsham. Philip has led the Activity Centres sub-committee since 2017 and has agreed to Chair the Project Steering Group for the Under-represented Communities Fund Project.

John retired having spent some 40 years working in telecommunications.  His scouting life started as a cub, scout and leader in Hertfordshire and progressed via Essex, Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and now Cheshire. During this time he has held roles at group, district and county levels including the county commissioner role in Bedfordshire.  Outside of Scouting he enjoys attending football matches as a supporter of Manchester United. He also is involved with various roles within the Methodist Church.

Ben is currently Chief Operating Officer for St John Ambulance Cymru, prior to that he was Head of Planning and Programmes for Event Planning at St John Ambulance England. Ben has led and implemented major improvement programmes and volunteering on the front line across the pandemic. Ben is Chair of his local Scout Group in Helsby.

Nung is an aspiring Educational Psychologist. She is currently studying Psychology in Education at the University of York and is due to graduate this Summer. Nung is progressing to study a PGCE at the University of Leeds. Nung sits across the Children in Care Council and Care Leavers Council representing the voice of young people and young adults in the care service under Cheshire West and Chester Council. Nung is a District Youth Lead for Ebor and when at home volunteers as an Assistant Cub Scout Leader for Cestrian Scout Group in Chester.

Jake started his scouting experience as an Explorer Scout at Aquila ESU and before turning 18, he became a young leader at 8th Widnes. He is currently District Youth Commissioner of Mersey Weaver and is a Section Assistant at 8th Widnes. Jake has a real passion for empowering young people to shape their Scout experience and modernising the image of scouting. Jake also has a deep commitment to promoting mental health and wellbeing, and he has created the 365 Steps of Wellbeing Challenge in Mersey Weaver, an initiative aimed at enabling and encouraging young people in our Scouting community to be happier, more active and more aware of the importance of mental health and wellbeing.  Jake is also involved in the planning of Chamboree Subcamps for 2022 as a Deputy Subcamp Leader and is very much looking forward to the event next year. Outside of Scouting, Jake is studying for a MChem in Pharmaceutical Chemistry at Leicester University and has been an active member of his faculty’s support network. In his spare time he enjoys cooking, art, watching films, attending festivals and meeting up with friends and family.

Danièle is a Strategic Advisor in the Life Sciences industry; her background is Programme Management, Business Change and Consultancy for AstraZeneca Pharmaceuticals and BioPhorum. In Scouting she has over ten years of experience in both leadership and governance roles in Greater Manchester West and was heavily involved in the first and subsequent NW Region Shelterbox Scavenger Hunts. She has travelled extensively with work, as a volunteer and as Deputy Lead for the GMW Explorer Belt expedition to the Baltic States. Danièle has two grown up daughters both participating in scouting. Danièle is a keen writer and looks after her orchard in her ‘spare’ time.

Glen Dugdale, BEng (Hons), PG (Dip), CIWFM, ACIBSE
Glen is the Estates Project Manager for the Sedbergh School Estate in Cumbria, a role he has held for 8 years, prior to which he was Head of Facilities Management Services for AQA. Glen has been a volunteer with 15th Warrington (St. Josephs) Scouts for over 20 years, is a County Training Advisor and was a member of the Cheshire Unit Leadership team to the 23rd World Scout Jamboree in Japan 2015.