Meet the team

• Mary Tate

  Partnership Manager

  Email: mary.tate@kent.gov.uk
  Tel: 03000 414833

  Mary Joined the Partnership in April 2022. Mary has previously worked with the Countryside Management Partnerships at our sister partnerships in Romney Marsh and Medway Valley. She has more recently been working for the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty Unit as the Countryside Manager in the Darent Valley. She has a BSC Hons in Ecology and is Forest School level 3 practitioner.

• Mark Gallant

  Senior Partnership Officer

  Email: mark.gallant@kent.gov.uk
  Tel: 03000 417 571 / 07740185228

  Mark Gallant started with the Partnership in February 2008. Mark was formerly the Conservation Officer with the Lea Rivers Trust, where he was involved in carrying out a range wide of conservation activities on the River Lea in East London. Mark has a BSc in Science in the Environment, a City and Guilds in Horticulture, a Higher Level NVQ in Environmental Management .

• Reece Evans

  Partnership Officer

  Email: reece.evans@kent.gov.uk
  Tel: 03000 413695

  Reece started with the partnership in July 2019. Reece was formerly the assistant partnership officer at our sister organisation Medway Valley Countryside Partnership. He gained this experience as part of his placement year at Bournemouth University completing a sandwich degree in BSc (Hons) Geography.

• Lucy Sawyer-Boyd

  Partnership Officer

  Email lucy.sawyer-boyd@kent.gov.uk
  Tel: 01322 621239

  Lucy started with the partnership in August 2019. She has worked as a reserve warden for Essex Wildlife Trust and in several Country Parks. She completed an apprenticeship as a Countryside Ranger with West Sussex County Council and a Level 2 diploma in Environmental Conservation.

• Stephanie Johnson

  Partnership Officer

  Email: Stephanie.Johnson@kent.gov.uk
  Telephone: 07816128570

  Stephanie started with the partnership in late 2017 as an assistant partnership officer and at the beginning of October 2018 was promoted to Partnership officer. She has experience in habitat management and volunteer management from working at Grosvenor and Hilbert country park. Stephanie runs our education offer at Lesnes Abbey along with leading other projects such as Natural Ways to Wellbeing. Stephanie has a BSc in Zoology and in 2022 became a qualified Forest School Level 3 practitioner.

• Mericka Simmons

  Assistant Partnership Officer

  Mericka.Simmons@kent.gov.uk
  Telephone: 07816128553

  Mericka's background is in education and home schooling, and she brings a wealth of skills and experience to help deliver our projects.