Who are we
We aim to be as transparent and accessible as possible. We hold regular opportunities for villagers to meet the CLT team. These include regular drop-in sessions and AGMs where we formally exchange ideas and agree on our joint strategy. You can find all the reports from our annual meetings here. If you’re interested in becoming a member, apply using the form on this page. And if you want to find out more about getting involved, go to our contact page. We’d love to hear from you.
Our Team
The East Bergholt CLT trustees are a team of volunteers living in the village. They bring an impressive range of professional experience to the table. Together, they are working to deliver affordable homes to the community.
Nigel Downton
Nigel’s career started in building societies, reaching management level. He then started his entrepreneurial career by co-founding of an estate agency and financial services business with multiple branches in the area eventually with Legal & General as a stakeholder.
During this period he gained an interest in IT systems from which he transferred skills to the international telecommunications arena. In that area he has been a director and CEO level of organisations that have deployed international networks, global data centres and laterally anti-fraud management systems. This work has taken him to fifty two countries on business. From 2003 to 2009 he chaired a local residential developer building a full range of homes from market entry homes to individual designer homes. During this period he oversaw all planning matters and interfacing with registered social landlords. Keen to harness new technologies he championed timber frame construction with high energy efficiency through to near passive and passive design. Semi-retirement has meant he has focused on new projects. These include establishing a wedding car hire business in the area and spending more time on his passions of photography and golf. He and his family have lived in East Bergholt since 2004.
Chris Tuppen
Chris is a physical scientist by training and spent his early career in R&D at BT, Martlesham. In 1990 he moved to the BT HQ in London and worked on corporate responsibility matters.
Ending his time there as BT’s Chief Sustainability Officer. He has sat on, and at times chaired, a number of international business-led NGO Boards. On leaving BT, he established a sustainability consultancy specialising in smart cities, climate change and the circular economy. He is a Visiting Professor of Smart Technology at the University of Suffolk. Chris has lived in East Bergholt for 31 years with his wife and family. For many years he chaired the East Bergholt Sports Council and is currently a member of East Bergholt Futures. He wrote the sustainability section of the Neighbourhood Plan.
Rolf Althen
Rolf is a lawyer with more than 20 years’ experience, working in industry and advising on corporate, commercial, governance and compliance matters. He brings his expertise to the set-up and management of East Bergholt Community Land Trust.
He moved to East Bergholt in 2010 with his family. Joining the East Bergholt Community Housing initiative gives him the opportunity to bring his experience to this important long-term community project.
Joan Miller
Joan is an economist by training and a change manager by inclination. She has led major business transformation projects in Essex and Suffolk county councils, as well as at Lambeth Council.
She spent 9 years as a member of the management board at both the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Here, she established the first jointly owned department and introduced initiatives to make the work that Parliament does more accessible. Joan has lived in East Bergholt for 46 years. In the eighties and nineties, she led parish council projects to ensure that new developments included the kind houses that the village needed. Since retiring 3 years ago, Joan has been actively involved in writing the housing chapter of East Bergholt's Neighbourhood Plan.
Julie Price
Julie is a full-time parent to school-age children. She is currently part of the East Bergholt Futures sustainability group, organises the primary school gardening club, sits on the Rare Breed Survival Trust committee for East Anglia.
Plus is Chairman of Brantham Scout & Guide Group, where plans are underway for a new building. Julie has a Human Geography degree and a Master’s degree in HR strategy. Her previous career was in Local Government, working at senior level for unitary and district councils across many roles, including strategy development, community partnership and change management. She has led multi-disciplinary partnership projects within local authorities and across the wider public sector, including police and health. Julie has been a village resident for over 30 years. She is also a breeder of rare breed sheep. Julie has a long involvement in voluntary and community groups, including having held a role as Chairman of the East Bergholt Society and a volunteer with Victim Support.
Nigel Roberts
Nigel is a chartered town planner and Fellow of the Royal Society for the Arts. He holds an Economics degree from Essex University and a Postgraduate Diploma in Town Planning from Kingston University.
Nigel worked as a town planner for Norfolk and Mid Glamorgan County Councils. He then undertook research at the University of East Anglia. He applied his analytical skills at real estate advisory firm JLL, where he was Head of European Research for 15 years, before becoming Chair of the Research teams across Europe. He went on to spend six years as Head of Real Estate Strategy at Hermes Investment Management, before retiring in 2017. Nigel has contributed widely to East Bergholt's Neighbourhood Plan.