Greenstead Community Board

Members of the Shadow Board (currently awaiting MHCLG approval)

Rev Sue Howlett - Community Board Chair & Vicar of Parish of St Andrew, St Matthew, St Anne - Colchester

Rev Sue Howlett has been Vicar of the Parish of St Andrew, St Matthew, St Anne for over 8 years. She comes from a nursing background, and from her time living and working in the East End of London, has gained a deeper understanding of the impact good community relationships can have on local residents, as well as the reality of health inequalities in areas of deprivation. Her parish reaches most of the area shown on the boundary map, and she has got to know the locality well. Her work extends beyond the confines of church buildings: she has been a member of the local Heart of Greenstead Board and has built up trusted relationships with other local agencies working within the proposed project boundary. She was part of the team who set up the Foodbank on the Greenstead Estate, and her church readily supports the local Community Supermarket. Rev Howlett is excited by the potential of this project to restore pride in the place of Greenstead and the Hythe.

Elizabeth Alake-Akinyemi - Community Board Vice Chair, Resident and Outreach Manager for Divine Assembly Ministries

Elizabeth is a resident of Greenstead and has been for 13 years. She is the Community Outreach Manager for Divine Assembly Ministries and currently runs the Community Fridge and other community projects. Elizabeth was involved in setting up the community supermarket and currently leads the team on a voluntary basis. She is a local school governor and a volunteer Chaplain at Essex University, as well as a volunteer community pastor at Divine Assembly Ministries, and currently resides in Greenstead with her family.

MP Pam Cox - Member of Parliament for Colchester

Pam is the Labour Member of Parliament for Colchester, elected in July 2024. Before entering Parliament, she was a Professor of Sociology and Criminology at the University of Essex, with a research background in social history, youth justice and criminology, and became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts in 2017. Cox has strong local roots in Colchester, having served as a City Councillor for New Town and Christ Church ward from 2021, and brings both academic expertise and constituency experience to her support for regeneration and community initiatives across the town, including Greenstead and the Hythe.

Lisa Cross - Resident & Green Growers

Lisa has lived on Greenstead for over 30 years and set up "Greenstead Growers" 5 years ago. It is a small group growing food and foraging on the estate, while building a supportive local community. She is also Greenstead's Green Party candidate and a friend to nature on the estate. Lisa has over 30 years' environmental experience and has worked with residents and volunteers of all backgrounds. She is working with Colchester City Council on a new Friends of the Stead project, coordinating and supporting wellbeing groups around the estate.

Nic Davey - Resident & Centre Manager for Greenstead Community Centre

Nic is a proud mum of two grown-up daughters and has been a single parent for over 20 years, having lived on Greenstead all her life. Her day job is Community Centre Manager, where she offers far more than hall hire — support and advice across many different areas, and a lifeline to many, simply by listening, showing empathy and offering a place to feel part of. Nic is also a school governor at a local school, and has been involved there for 12 years.

Samantha Jones - Place Regeneration Lead for Essex County Council

Sam works in the Place Regeneration Team at Essex County Council, supporting projects across North East Essex. With over 25 years’ experience across the public and charity sectors, Sam has a strong track record of working alongside communities and partners to develop and deliver a wide range of projects, as well as helping secure funding to bring ideas to life. Her work has spanned everything from community festivals to major regeneration programmes, as well as supporting community-led housing initiatives nationally through the Community Land Trust network.

Stephen Onichabor - Resident and Greenstead Community Supermarket

Stephen has lived in Greenstead for over two years, raising his family on the estate. He has experience setting up the Greenstead Community Supermarket and currently sits on its board, and also volunteers with the Boaz project, operating the Community Fridge at Hythe. Stephen brings experience in project management and community engagement, and is a Pastor of a community church in Greenstead, as well as a member of staff at Essex County Council. He is particularly interested in green spaces, young people's engagement, and business development on the estate.

Philip Sullivan - Chief Executive Officer for Colchester Borough Homes

Philip is a Chartered Surveyor with over 20 years experience of operating at a senior level in the social housing sector. Philip’s last two roles have been at Chef Executive level. He is currently Chief Executive of Colchester Borough Homes, the Council’s social housing management company where he has overall responsibility for the management and maintenance of the Council’s 7,000 homes (including those on Greenstead), as well as for the City Council’s homelessness services.

Scott Tatum - Resident

Scott has lived in Colchester at the Hythe for over 30 years. He has worked at a number of charitable organisations and has a deep routed affection for Colchester. Community is at the heart of every project he delivers, and he has worked in and around Greenstead for many years. His family lived in Greenstead and he spent much of his youth on the estate. Scott is committed to helping to improve the wellbeing of residents and knows that through great collaboration and a strong community led project, many great things will be achieved.

Tom Taylor - Community & Health Manager for Colchester City Council

Tom works for Colchester City Council as Community & Health Manager and has worked within and alongside communities for his career of 20 years previously with Colchester United and Colchester United Community Foundation. Having worked within Greenstead setting up social inclusion projects and working alongside other delivery partners in the past, as well as being a regular user of facilities in the ward Tom will look to use his previous experience, connections and current working relationships to support the Pride in Place programme through being a Greenstead Neighbourhood Board Member.

Nicky Young - Practice Manager for Hawthorn Surgery

Nicky is the Practice Manager at the Hawthorn Surgery, a role she has held for approximately 10 years. She grew up on Greenstead and was a Beaver Scout Leader on the estate for many years. Nicky is also a Priest in the Church of England, as well as a Trustee for Beacon House and CCDC. She is very passionate about the people who live on Greenstead and hopes to come to understand where investment is best spent to bring about the long-term changes that people want and leave a legacy for the next generation.

Emma Wigmore - Chief Executive Officer for Vine School Trust and former Resident

Emma grew up on the Greenstead Estate in Colchester, attending Sir Charles Lucas School and then Colchester Sixth Form College. Greenstead remains a place she is deeply proud to call home, and its strong sense of community has helped shape her values and ambitions. With lived experience of growing up on the estate, Emma understands both its strengths and the challenges many residents face around opportunity and social mobility. She became the first in her family to attend university, went on to live and work abroad, and now holds a chief executive role in the education sector. She is keen to bring this experience, insight and leadership to support Greenstead's future, helping local people feel proud of where they live and able to access the opportunities they need.

Cllr Julie Young - Borough Councillor for Greensteed

Julie Young was elected as a Labour Councillor in 1998 to serve the Greenstead ward.On Colchester City Council she has held multiple senior roles including acting as Deputy Leader of the Council. She also represented the ward as part of the Wivenhoe St Andrew Division on Essex County Council between 2001 and 2021.Julie also has experience in health serving as a Non-Executive Director of Colchester PCT and the community health provider Anglian Community Enterprise . She also served as a school governor in the community between the years of 1992 and 2015 on the three schools in the Greenstead ward.

Darren Meitner-Harvey - Vice-Principal for Colchester Academy

Bio pending.

The Greenstead Community Board is supported by the Greenstead Residents Panel, Business Panel and Youth Panel.

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