Meet the team

Elizabeth (Liz) Barnes
President

Professor Elizabeth Barnes CBE is the Lord-Lieutenant of Staffordshire. She started this role on 15 July 2025.

Before becoming Lord-Lieutenant, Liz worked in education. She began as a PE and Maths teacher at Longton High School in Stoke-on-Trent and Bilbrook Middle School. Later, she moved into higher education and worked in four universities for nearly 35 years. Liz finished her full-time career as Vice Chancellor and Chief Executive of Staffordshire University.

Liz has always helped in her community. She has volunteered and been a trustee for many charities and organisations. Early in her career, she coached county netball teams and was a netball umpire. More recently, she has been part of five Multi-Academy Trusts, co-chaired the Opportunity Area for Schools in Stoke-on-Trent, and is Vice Chair of Aspire Housing.

Liz spent 23 years in the North East. There, she was a Non-Executive Director for University Hospitals Tees and a Governor for Sunderland University.

In 2019, Liz was awarded a CBE for her work in higher education. She was a Board Member for Universities UK, Vice Chair for the Million Plus Universities’ Mission Group, and a Trustee for JISC, which provides IT networks for universities and colleges. She also served as a Governor for Middlesex University and is now on the Board for the Lifelong Learning Institute.

Sarah Cooke
Chair

I was raised on a farm in the Staffordshire Moorlands and although I’ve moved around the UK with work, I’ve settled back here with my husband, stepchildren, horses, dog, and cat. I’m passionate about preserving our countryside but also about making it as inclusive as possible, as the benefits of being connected to nature are huge. I’m also keen to teach people about sustainable/conscious food choices to protect our farming industry and reduce our impact on the world.

Philip Atkins

Vice-President

Philip Atkins OBE has lived and farmed for over 50 years at Rocester. He currently farms 67 hectares (165 acres) of mainly arable land between the River Dove and Churnet with a small closed flock of Shropshire sheep. He has been involved in most types of farming over the years from livestock and dairy to arable, including growing vegetables, and his farm is now in Higher Level Stewardship. He is also the Uttoxeter NFU Branch Chairman and set up a farmers’ group who ran the Uttoxeter Farmers’ Market.

Philip has been active in local politics since the mid-1980s, and was Leader of Staffordshire County Council from 2009 until July 2020. Over the years, he has been an East Staffordshire Borough Councillor and a parish councillor, as well as a school governor and Fellow of Keele University. He has represented Staffordshire on many regional and national bodies and is Staffordshire’s representative on the Rural Services Network.

Mary Booth
Vice-Chair and Trustee (Finances)

Brought up in Cheshire, Mary obtained a degree in Modern Languages at the University of London and then spent three years working in Sydney, Australia with her husband Richard. She has three daughters and five grand-children, and has lived in Gnosall since 1974. She has a Certificate (HE) in Local Council Administration and an MSc in Local Economic Regeneration. Mary was chairman of CPRE Staffordshire from 2015 to 2018, having previously served for several years as vice-chairman. She is also a parish councillor in Gnosall.

Sarah Burgess
Trustee

Sarah worked in the CPRE Staffordshire office from 2017 to 2025 and became a trustee to keep up her involvement with CPRE and to support its work to protect, promote and enhance the countryside. She lives in Stafford and enjoys exploring the countryside on foot, by bike or by horse. She is also a member of Stafford Borough Council’s Community Climate Change Panel.

Kudzai Chivenga

Trustee

Kudzai holds a degree in Land Economy from the University of Cambridge, where she also served as President of Hughes Hall. She is particularly interested in sustainable land use, planning policy, and the responsible stewardship of the countryside. As an avid walker and hiker, Kudzai enjoys exploring Staffordshire’s landscapes, which deepens her commitment to protecting the rural heritage and natural beauty that CPRE works to preserve. She strongly believes that the countryside should be accessible and valued by all, for the benefit of present and future generations.

Dave Evans
Trustee and Stakeholder Liaision

David lives on the south of Stoke-on-Trent (Lightwood). He has held senior positions for many years within the UK and European steel industry. He has sat on a number of European trade committees in both Brussels and Dusseldorf and actively and successfully led trade action against non-compliant (unsafe) trade from China into the European market. He has also provided consultancy assistance on numerous projects around the world.

Away from his professional career, David has been Chair of The Lightwood Community Group since 2014. The group has been successful in campaigning against inappropriate planning applications in the Green Belt. Joining the CPRE as a Trustee is important to David as he wants to help other community groups across the county who may face similar challenges.

David has a daughter and two Labrador dogs and is passionate about helping to protect the countryside for future generations.

Aaliyah Gardner
Branch Manager

Aaliyah grew up in rural Devon, spending her weekends walking with her family and dogs on Dartmoor. She moved to Stoke-On-Trent in 2021 where she completed her undergraduate degree in Global Media and Sociology, and her Masters in Global Communications and Management Studies at Keele University. She co-founded Earth Stories Film Festival in 2022, an international, environmental film festival, dedicated to providing a platform for young people to articulate their concerns around the climate crisis through creative storytelling. Her work focuses on engaging young people in conversations around climate change and sustainability, connecting communities and promoting the arts in Staffordshire. She is excited to be a part of CPRE Staffordshire, developing her work in rural communities, improving rural accessibility and promoting the value of nature reconnection.

Steve Hopkins
Trustee and Planning Policy Lead

Born and brought up in South London, Steve read Geography at Cambridge and took an MA in Environmental Planning at Nottingham University. He then worked on a project at the then Oxford Polytechnic comparing local planning practice in England and the Netherlands, before starting a career in local government. He held corporate management posts at South Yorkshire Metropolitan County Council, the London Borough of Croydon and Norfolk County Council, before joining Staffordshire County Council in 1991, where he held a number of positions in the Chief Executive’s Office, culminating as Head of External Relations. Since retiring in 2010, Steve has been keen to maintain his interests in rural matters and the voluntary sector. He was the Chairman of the former Community Council of Staffordshire, Chair of the Newcastle-under-Lyme Voluntary Sector Forum and a Trustee of Beaudesert Trust, an outdoor activity centre on Cannock Chase.

Steve and his wife and have lived Gnosall for over 20 years. They have two grown-up children and three grandchildren. Steve is an Honorary Steward at Twickenham, and a Vice-President of Newport (Salop) Rugby Club.

Mohammed Khuram
Trustee

Mohammed has 20 years’ experience in the energy industry, with over half of his career in expatriate postings in the Netherlands, Kazakhstan, the UAE, Iraq, and Brunei. He is particularly experienced in the commercial execution of major infrastructure projects, including the setting up of new project teams, engagement with Government and regulatory bodies, and dialogue with local communities.

Mohammed graduated from Oriel College, Oxford with a degree in Law, during which time he interned as a Political Researcher in the House of Commons and for the Foreign Office in Chad and Cameroon.

He was elected as Chairman of CPRE Staffordshire in 2022 and is a Trustee of several other groups, including the Staffordshire Cadets, King George V Lands Trust at Beaudesert, and the Scouts.

He has previously volunteered as a Mentor for the Prince’s Trust in Scotland and as Director for Communications and Development at the Prince of Wales’ Turquoise Mountain Foundation in Afghanistan.

Steve Sankey
Trustee

Steve has over 30 years’ experience working in IT, the last 15 years as IT Director in a number of large public sector organisations.

He has been involved in the local community over many years, including being chair of governors at several schools; trustee at a local Citizen Advice centre; trustee at a local community transport organisation; chair of a large swimming club; and a Cub Scout leader.

He is currently a leader of a local Christian youth group for children aged five to 11, member of the Royal British Legion, and a local borough councillor, where he has fought against a number of inappropriate planning applications. Steve is also the secretary of the local Men’s Shed group, which supports improvements in mental health in the community.

Steve in passionate about the countryside. He has undertaken many long-distance walks and encourages walking as a pastime for all ages. Steve is also interested in combating rural isolation and the problems this brings to our rural communities.

Click here for further details of our organisational structure.