Meet the team at GCH and our Founding Committee Associates…

Cara Sutherland
Director & Co-Founder

Alongside leading GCH, I’m a Consultant working with artists, small businesses and cultural organisations. After beginning my career in community focused arts organisations, I developed a passion for working in partnership with communities to co-produce and develop innovative projects.

I am a passionate advocate for heritage accessibility and my drive to support, protect and interpret Sheffield’s green heritage, with the community, has never been stronger. We must not ignore the very real threat to society and our planet if we neglect, forget and disengage with our green heritage.

Calvin Payne
Co-Founder

I have lived in Sheffield since 2004. I have contributed to online studies of the city’s history for several years on Sheffield History. I am the author of ‘Drainspotting – A guide to the pavement features of Sheffield’ which was published in 2014.

In recent years I have been known as an activist in the campaign against the felling of healthy trees in the city. I am Secretary of the ‘Street Heritage Research Group’ which brings together academics from across different fields of study relating the history of our streets.

I have been a tour guide at the annual Heritage Open Days event for several years and am currently a member of the Sheffield organising committee for HODS

Carole Sutherland
Co-Founder

I moved to Sheffield from Buckinghamshire with my husband in July 2005, predominantly to be closer to the Peak District and Stanage Edge, which we had visited many times, enjoying the rock climbs that it had to offer, alongside the wonderful scenery of the Peak District. We have never regretted moving here, enjoying the small town feel of a big City that is Sheffield.

It is a well-known fact that Sheffield has been documented as being one of the greenest Cities, but the greenness of our city is under threat through what I consider to be cynical decision making and neglect, whether it be our street trees, parks, open spaces and rivers.

My passion for our Green City Heritage has driven me to become an active citizen involved in the Tree Campaign here in Sheffield , carrying out Non Violent Direct Action to protect trees across the City, I have been involved in collating surveys with communities to document their view of what street trees mean to them and how much they value them , collecting data to monitor the quality and condition of saplings recently planted to advocate that these are ‘looked after ‘ and maintained to provide future benefits to our communities.

I feel passionately that the ‘Green’ amenities within our city are a legacy that we need to maintain for current and future residents of Sheffield to be enjoyed, discovered valued and protected, that our communities can take ownership of our ‘green spaces’.

In my professional life, I work with the most vulnerable in our society, our green spaces are assets that can benefit the health &well-being of all equitably, improving people’s quality of life at no personal financial cost.
I feel that GCH will engage communities and enable projects to create opportunities for people to understand and experience green heritage, to share/document their stories, to use and create spaces for the future, create art/installations within, celebrating green heritage.

GCH can support and lead the way for communities to enrich and celebrate the ‘Greenness’ of Sheffield .