Born in Skegness, Chris went to the local grammar school before studying Business Studies at Shefield Polytechnic. He went on to qualify as a Chartered Management Accountant working for Fogarty's, Lin Pac and British Fuels before moving to Butlins and settling back in Skegness for the last 30 years. For the last 20 years Chris was the Resort Director for the Skegness Resort. He has been actively involved in promoting the coastal strip and the Visitor Economy for Lincolnshire representing both on the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership and as Chair of the Greater Lincolnshire Visitor Economy Board. He is also Vice Chair of the Visit Lincs Coast Destination Business Improvement District, Chair of the Advisory Council of the Skegness Academy and a member of the Coastal Developers Forum.

Claire Draper is the Director of Finance at Fantasy Island in Ingoldmells. Having attended Skegness Grammar School, Claire briefly left the Lincolnshire area to attain a Law Degree at the University of East Anglia and went on to begin her Chartered Accountancy training in Peterborough and London. She later returned to Skegness to work for a local accountancy firm, gaining a huge wealth of knowledge of local businesses and the issues that they face. Now a fellow of the ICAEW, Claire has worked at Fantasy Island for 10 years and is committed to driving economic growth and sustainability for the area. As a keen triathlete, Claire is passionate about the incredible natural landscape our area has to offer and is steadfast in her drive to help the Joint Towns' Deal Board secure investment for Skegness and Mablethorpe with a fully transparent and integrated approach.

Pat moved to Lincolnshire around 30 years ago and leads NatWest Bank's Commercial Business in the area. He is responsible for the Bank's Commercial team across most of Lincolnshire inc Mablethorpe and Skegness where we look after Customers in the mid-market segment and have specialisms in Leisure, Health, Logistics, Manufacturing, Technology, Construction and Agriculture.

He was recently past Vice Chair of the Lincoln College Group and is currently Interim Chair of the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership. He additionally is also Chair the Employment and Skills Board for the LEP, is a member of the Investment and European Funding Committees and also a member of the University of Lincoln International Business School's Advisory Board. His personal passions are all things Welsh sport especially Rugby as well as a bit of cycling to keep at least partially fit! He loves spending time with his family and loves the County and is encouraged by both its growth and continued potential.

Robert Caudwell is a farmer from South Lincolnshire farming land adjacent to the Wash and has been involved with flood defence all his career. He currently Chairs the Association of Drainage Authorities and is President of the European Union of Water Management Associations. Robert also is Chairman of Covenham RYA Sailabilty and works with Navigo providing sailing experience to Navigo members. Robert has experience of local government and government agencies at local, regional and national level.

Matt Warman is the Conservative MP for Boston and Skegness. He was first elected as an MP in May 2015. Retaining the seat for the Conservatives with a majority of 4,336, he campaigned on a commitment to improve communication between Westminster and the electorate, and increasing investment in Lincolnshire’s roads, broadband and public services. In 2017 he was returned to Parliament with an increased majority of 16,572, and again in 2019 with a majority of 25,621.

In the 2015-2017 Parliament, Matt was a member of the Science and Technology Select Committee, and Co-Chaired the All Party Parliamentary Group on Broadband and Digital Communication and Pictfor (The Parliamentary Internet, Communications and Technology Forum).

In January 2018, Matt was appointed PPS to the Rt Hon Karen Bradley MP, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, having previously served as her PPS in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport from June 2017. Between April 2019 and July 2019 Matt served as an Assistant Government Whip, before being appointed as a minister in the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. As Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Digital and Broadband, this portfolio covers digital and tech policy, online harms and security, digital infrastructure and digital skills.

Victoria was first elected and the Member of Parliament for Louth & Horncastle in 2015 and re-elected in 2017 and 2019. Since Victoria's election to office she has campaigned on a range of issues, including the provision of rural broadband, defence, wind turbines, coastal issues, roads, schools, the health service and the importance of the rural way of life.
In November 2017 Victoria was appointed to the Home Office, as Minister for Crime, Safeguarding and Vulnerability. At the start of 2018, the centenary year of some women gaining the right to vote, Victoria was made Minister for Women in addition to her duties in the Home Office.
Prior to becoming a Member of Parliament, Victoria practiced as a criminal barrister specialising in prosecuting serious organised crime.

Initially from a farming back ground, Janet has over 40 years' experience in the leisure industry developing Woodthorpe Leisure Park, Woody's bar and Restaurant, Woodthorpe country cottages and Chapel Sands to their successful position to date. She is also the Founding member of the BID and still working pro-actively within this position. She is a Member of a variety of committees including Skegness chamber of commerce, treasurer of Mablethorpe CCT, Strubby with Woodthorpe parish committee, Lady President of Woodthorpe Hall Golf Club and member of BH&HPA. She also takes an active role and interest in her families enterprises including British garden Centres and Lincs Aquatics Ltd.

John Henry grew up in Tennessee doing environmental projects since 1975 and teaching mountain rescue to the US Marines. His PhD was on the Island of Rhum, Scotland, and he carried out early climate change research in Canada, before delivering a research project for the UNECE on acid rain at the Natural History Museum. He authored the UK's first Carbon Footprint for a coal fired power station at Bilsthorpe, Notts in 1989. He career has been helping companies and countries engage and reduce their environmental impacts across a wide range of manufacturing, food and energy projects in over 30 countries. He has returned to living in the Lincolnshire Wolds area due the quality of life here and is helping organisations transform their approach and become sustainable. He has also helped many Councils deliver projects and was the technical author of the DECC BIS report on the green economy and well as delivering Innovate UK projects. He is an Honorary Professor at the University of Nottingham, a Visiting Fellow at the University of Bristol, and recently an Associate Lecturer at the University of Lincoln. He has been on the Boards of several international charities delivering change and has a Diploma and Certificate in Company Direction from the IoD as part of the Chartered Director Qualification.

Ruth is responsible for the day to day running and development of the LEP. She works closely with the Board and guides the strategic direction, ensuring it retains its focus on productivity, creating jobs and removing the barriers to economic growth. Ruth enables Greater Lincolnshire.

Robert has been Managing Director of Micronclean for the last 6 years having joined the business as Finance Director in 2007. Micronclean operates 3 specialist garment laundries in Lincolnshire supplying pharmaceutical and other niche businesses. In recent years Micronclean have developed a sterile consumable business that now exports to over 30 countries with core products manufactured in Skegness. Our latest venture is opening a cleanroom laundry in Bangalore. Away from work his interests include Rowing and Gardening and he is married with 3 teenage children. Robert is also currently Chairman of Boston Rowing Club and Governor at Bourne Grammar school.

Freddie is a Board director and Business Development director at Lindum Group. He is involved across the business, in construction, joint ventures and development. He chairs the waste recycling division and HR department and is passionate about the apprentices and training programme, helping and encouraging more youngsters into construction. Before coming back to Lincolnshire in 2011 Freddie worked as a Chartered Surveyor for a property company in London.

She is a fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants And school Governor for Boston West Academy since 2017. In April 2013, she was appointed as Chief Finance Officer for Lincolnshire East Clinical Commissioning Group (CCG) and enjoyed seven years as an Executive Team and Governing Body member. She has supported local delivery plans designed to improve the health and wellbeing of the population in East Lincolnshire. )
The introduction of the NHS Lincolnshire CCG on 1 April 2020, following the merger of the four CCGs, led to Sandra being appointed Chief Operating Officer for East Locality and Executive Lead for reducing health inequalities.
She is passionate about improving care and better outcomes for people of Lincolnshire building on the great work undertaken so far and recognises the significance of her role in addressing health inequalities, specifically for the East Coast.

Jacqui has worked in Lincolnshire since 2017, prior to this she spent 15 years leading and delivering strategic change programmes and projects across Hertfordshire. This included countywide changes to hospital services, the development of the award winning New QEII Hospital Welwyn Garden City and the refresh of the Hertfordshire Health and Wellbeing Strategy in 2016.

She joined the NHS in Hertfordshire in 2002, after a career in the commercial and charity sectors. Her NHS work has involved leading on strategic planning and implementing change across the county. Jacqui led the development of the New QEII Hospital in Welwyn Garden City from inception to financial close, a project which involved significant stakeholder engagement in a politically challenging environment. All of these changes have been made in the context of developing sustainable integrated services which involve social care and the voluntary sector, in order to deliver the best possible outcomes for all.

Craig has been a district councillor since 2007 and was elected leader in 2015 after serving as deputy leader and planning portfolio holder. He has strong family connections with Lincolnshire and have lived here since 1984. Craig is a partner in his family business trading in Woodhall Spa as VOC Antiques since 1986. Lincolnshire is a wonderful place to live and work and he is delighted that Mablethorpe and Skegness have been given the opportunity to be part of the Town Fund initiative. He will work hard to make sure we are successful in securing a great future for both towns.

Steve has lived in Skegness for the last 38 years. He has two children that were both educated in the town before heading off to university. Steve represents Skegness on the Town District and County Councils. In addition, he is Portfolio Holder for the Coastal Economy, Employment and Skills at the district council. Steve is a Chartered Manager and a Fellow of the Chartered Management Institute.

Steve runs his own training company that delivers Assessor and Internal Quality Assurance qualifications across the UK from its centre in Boston, Manchester, Birmingham and London. He also runs a consultancy service for organisations working in or about to enter the FE sector. Prior to this Steve spent 10 years as an Area Manager for a London based Housing Association. The Housing association specialist in housing and support for those with mental health, drug or alcohol problems. Steve sits on a number of different boards including the Lincolnshire Coastal Destination Bid and Skegness Trading Company and is a trustee of two local charities; East Lindsey Information Technology Centre (First College) and Skegness Sports Association. He is also a member of the Gibraltar Point Advisor Committee. In his spare time, Steve likes to get some sleep.

Colin Davie is the Executive Councillor for Economy & Place at Lincolnshire County Council. This is a position he has held since 2013 and one to which he was reappointed, following elections in May 2017. He has been a member of the County Council since 2005. He is also a Director and Board Member of the Greater Lincolnshire Local Enterprise Partnership. He is also a director of National research charity, the Renewable Energy Foundation.

Colin lives on his family farm, where he grew up in the Village of Orby, close to the Lincolnshire coast and is married to Vanessa. He studied Politics and Economic History in London and then went into the Entertainment Industry where he has had a hugely successful career as an Agent, Manager and Promoter of major International events for nearly 35 years. The company he founded in 1992 (Planet 7 Entertainment Ltd) continues to provide event services internationally and he has proudly worked with such stars as Michael Jackson, Lionel Ritchie & Andrea Boccelli. He has also coordinated major events such as Miss World and the IIFA Awards and produced musical theatre events such as Mama Mia, Chicago and the Sound of Music in the Middle East.

He is a passionate advocate for stronger International relationships to aid economic growth and has been a champion of stronger ties between Hunan and Lincolnshire since he took office in 2013. He believes in a strong interconnected World based on mutual relationships and is a strong advocate for China and India been central to a successful global economic model for the future. He also believes emerging markets will drive a successful global economy and sees his country as Global Britain, trading and working in partnership across the globe.

Ann is the CEO of the TEC Partnership which is a group of colleges, training providers and 14-16 school provision which covers the coastal and rural areas from Skegness to Scarborough. Ann took up her role in February 2022 but had worked for the Partnership for the last 6 years at Scarborough TEC which is a general further education college. During that period of time has relocated to the college to a new site, rebranded the organisation and overseen a rapid improvement in achievement rates for students. Ann is committed to supporting young people and adults to achieve their career goals and throughout her career she has ensured that the organisations she works for put students with special educational needs and disabilities at the heart of their offer.

Claire has devoted a 25-year career to working in further and higher education. She is passionate about improving people’s life chances through the transformational power of education, skills and training. Claire has worked in several successful colleges, initially as a teacher in the creative arts. She has been a senior leader for 7 years and proudly now, as the Principal and CEO of Boston College. She has developed many new and different approaches to educational challenges and enjoys the chance to challenge the ‘norm’. As a proud mother of three grown up children, she is particularly pleased that Thomas, her son with Down’s Syndrome, demonstrates the usefulness of people with educational needs, working in the East Coast family business that she and her husband runs.

Although she started her current college role in the midst of the pandemic (yes,… that was interesting…), Claire has worked quickly to build strong, purposeful partnerships with businesses in Boston and its surrounds, to secure mutually beneficial opportunities, such as the Town Deal, made possible from effective collaboration.

Sid was born and has lived in Skegness all of his life, enjoying every minute of it. He has been married to Marie for over 45 years and has two Sons and 3 Grand Daughters.

In his younger years he was a bass guitarist and singer in a local rock band and in 1980 successfully went on to hone his skills as a Comedian and After Dinner Speaker. He was honoured to be asked to join the Grand Order of Water Rats of which he is a proud member.

Sid owns and runs a Family owned Recycling Company based in Skegness, which has been established since 1884. He is a serving ELDC Councillor (9 years) and a member of Skegness Town Council (9 years). He is also Chairman of the BID Board, a member of the Skegness chamber of trade and a member of his local PPG (Patient Participation Group]. He is part of our local Hospital Watch and a member of the Skegness Twinning Association.

I grew up in Sutton-on-Sea staging puppet shows on the beach. my first job was running the dodgems at Mablethorpe. At Alford Queen Elizabeth Grammar School I won a scholarship to Oxford where I directed Terry Jones & Michael Palin & Nigel Rees in various shows & filmed with Richard Burton & Elizabeth Taylor. I worked as a clergyman in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, in the East end & in Friern Barnet where I ran an arts Centre. I was the editor of the ITV Teletext religious pages & appeared on the reality TV show “The Search” wet-rafting down the Amazon etc. After retiring I became Chair of the Sutton-on-Sea Residents Association, a post I held until being elected to the Councils.

Caroline joined YMCA Lincolnshire as Chief Executive in 2018, following a successful senior leadership career in the public/not for profit sectors, more recently leading the community team for a large national charity.

Caroline's expertise lies in community development and involvement, urban regeneration and community development/support. Lincolnshire YMCA has been supporting communities across Lincolnshire for the past 150 years and the current portfolio consists of supported and emergency accommodation, community based child and youth services, training & skills development programmes and physical & mental wellbeing support services.

Institute of Directors - Winner Third Sector Director of the Year (East Midlands) 2019.
Regional Finalist - Forward Ladies Public Sector Award 2019.

John Latham is the Director of Deputy Vice Chancellor Projects at the University, having previously worked for the City of Lincoln Council where he was Director of Development from 2007 to 2016.

John’s role at the University is to support the VC and DVCs in developing the external engagement of the University, working with partners in industry, FE, and community organisations. On behalf of the University, John is a Director of Investors in Lincoln, Lincoln BIG, the Lincoln Science Park, and LEAP. Alongside working at the University, John works as a coach and mentor.

In addition, John is Chair of the Lincoln Engineering Breakfast, the organisers of Spark, the Chair of Lincolnshire Community & Voluntary Services, a YMCA Trustee, and a Parish Councillor.

John has lived in Lincolnshire for 30 years, having grown up in Essex; he is married with 2 adult children.

Tim Allen manages Historic England’s Development Advice team covering the north half of the Midlands. Trained as an archaeologist he is the Inspector of Ancient Monuments for the County and a Fellow of Society of Antiquaries. Historic England (the Historic buildings and Monuments Commission for England is Government’s expert advisor on the Historic Environment. Tim has been with Historic England (formerly English Heritage) since 2005. Tim’s team works closely with public, private and third sector bodies on energy and coastal infrastructure, heritage led regeneration, local planning, farming and environmental management. Communities are at the heart of Historic England’s focus on the Lincolnshire Coast, including grant led work in Grimsby on the High Street Heritage Action Zone and other key heritage sites. HE works closely with partners around the coast via Towns Fund / Levelling Up and through directly funded research such as the Lincolnshire County Council’s Inns on the Edge Project looking at the importance and viability of coastal pubs.

Revd Canon Chris Lilley is the Church of England’s Partnership Dean for East Lindsey. This is a voluntary role that covers the 165 Anglican churches in the East Lindsey District Council area including working alongside the eleven paid clergy and dozens of volunteers. The aim is to grow the number of church members and to grow their faith. He was a member of the Church of England’s General Synod for twenty years and has held numerous roles in Lincoln Diocese including Chair of the House of Clergy and vice chair of the Diocesan Board of Finance.

Chris is a yellow belly born in Grantham. He lived for eleven years in Skegness in the 1980/90’s and returned to the coast on his ostensible retirement thirteen years ago. He is based in the Mablethorpe and Sutton on Sea Groups of Parishes which he loves. He is a trustee, board member or committee member of a number of local groups.

Before his ordination at the age of 33 Chris was a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants and a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Taxation. He was a partner in the large Lincolnshire firm of Duncan and Toplis.

Chris is passionate about the Lincolnshire coast and walks his black Labrador for at least five miles on the beach most morning but twice a week Chris runs for 10K whilst the dog walks beside him!. Chris enjoys singing, acting in musicals and directing large scale outdoor Passion Plays and Nativity Plays. He also enjoys being the ship’s Chaplain on cruises!