Farnham Biodiversity Action Plan

Noel Moss

Bourne Conservation Group
 

Born a man of Kent, Noel served a full career in the Army during which time he was of no fixed abode, although with his wife acquired a house in Fleet. On retirement from the Service they looked for a property with a larger garden and eventually found their present house in Lower Bourne a year later. Noel went on working in Defence Industry but, while looking for a way of connecting better with the local community, also joined The Bourne Conservation Group as a founder member. After serving his apprenticeship as secretary from 2002 until 2006 he was surprised as a conservation novice to find himself chairman, a post he has occupied ever since. In that period he has overseen the widening of the Group’s activities and takes pride in its attainments and the valuable contribution now made to natural and historical conservation in The Bourne. The need to extend a similar approach across the rest Farnham gradually became apparent has led to Noel helping with the launch of the Farnham Biodiversity Group in 2019.

Martin Angel

Bourne Conservation Group
 

Moved to Farnham in 1978. He retired in 1997 after 32 years in the Institute of Oceanographical Sciences. For the last eleven years he was head of Biological Oceanography, and spent fifteen years as co-editor of Progress in Oceanography. He also served as Vice Chairman of the British Ecological Society for two years. After retirement he fulfilled a number of contracts including the preparation of a report on the health of the North Atlantic for OSPAR, While in Farnham, he has become progressively more involved in fulfilling a number variety of conservation roles mostly for the the Bourne Conservation Group but also the Surrey Wildlife Trust. He has recorded moths for the past decade in and around Farnham and has accumulated a large portfolio of photographs of the local wildlife.

Steve Langham

Surrey Amphibian and Reptile Group
 

Originally from London, Steve has lived in Farnham since the early 90s. Professionally a Physicist, working as a defence scientist in the MoD for almost 30 years, he is now managing director of an intelligence company serving NGOs, government and commercial industry. He has a fondness for 'creeping things' and the adder in particular. having authored several papers including 'The status of the adder in England' and 'Human fatalities attributed to adder bite in Britain'. Steve is chair of the Surrey Amphibian and Reptile Group, a trustee of ARG UK (a national conservation charity) and an expert advisor to Natural England. His interests include classic and performance cars, martial arts and antique military swords.

Libby Ralph

Friends of Farnham Park
 

Libby has lived in Farnham since 1988. After 30 or so years as a manager and business consultant in major IT firms, Libby quit her desk in 2010 and studied for a First Class Honours degree in Conservation and Wildlife Management. She is a Trustee of the Friends of Farnham Park, and chairs the Farnham Rivers Group, which monitors the health of the River Wey through the town. She volunteers 4 days a week for various conservation organisations, including RSPB, Butterfly Conservation, Natural England and Farnham Park, and was previously a volunteer warden for Surrey Wildlife Trust. Her interests include overall landscape ecology, and the behavior and ecology of small mammals.

Peter Gillespie

 

Born in Dublin, Peter has lived in Farnham since 1999. A chartered accountant, he worked in manufacturing and services in the UK and abroad before creating his own business services company. He was a founder member of the Bourne Conservation Group, and had a tiny part to play in producing ISO 26000 Social Responsibility. His final employment was as CSR Director for a large group.