MP for the Bury St Edmunds Constituency

Trustee 1979-2023. Chair 1990-2010.

Aoife is an Architect who has lived and worked in Bury St Edmunds since relocating here in 2007, she has always had an interest in historic buildings. A director of a local practice, BCR Infinity Architects, she takes an interest in all development in and around the area.

Keen on exploring and developing modern methods of construction and promotion of sustainable materials she has experience of implementing these skills when working with listed buildings. Her professional interests and areas of work have led her towards the restoration and enhancement of listed buildings where Aoife has been able work with multi-disciplinary teams to create sensitive alterations and extensions to listed buildings.

Aoife has a broad design experience that extends to a full range of project types and sectors and has been instrumental in driving the design development and managing the delivery of complex education and community schemes through to domestic and refurbishment projects in sensitive historic settings and working environments within programme and budget; whilst ensuring a quality of design and construction.

Paul is the Trust’s acting Treasurer and is a partner in Whiting & Partners, a Bury St Edmunds based regional firm of chartered accountants and business advisors. He is closely involved with many of his firm’s charity and not-for-profit clients and has continued his firm’s long association with the Town Trust over many years.

Jonathan entered into the commercial property market as a trainee surveyor in 1985 and qualified as a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in 1991. He spent 12 years working in Norwich before joining George Hazell as a consultant in 1997, joining the partnership in 2001 before then turning the firm into a private company in 2007.

His expertise is in commercial property and residential and commercial development land,  advising clients in respect of their commercial property requirements including buying, selling, valuations, rent reviews, lease renewals and rating advice. He provides landowners with help and advice in respect of development land both commercial and residential and oversees the growth and development of the company as a whole.

He has been on the Board of the Town Trust for over twenty years and has been involved with a number of their projects over this period. He was Chair of the Trust from 2021 to 2026.

John trained in land management and subsequently in architectural conservation.  After working for a firm of international property consultants, and then in the voluntary sector, he established his own practice specialising in planning cases which included advocacy at public inquiries and before parliamentary select committees.  His work also involved heritage property management for which he wrote the original national guidance.

He is a former special adviser to the House of Commons Environment and Transport Committee, and was member of the Broads Authority where he was vice-chair of its Environment Committee.  He has also been a member of the executive committee and council of The National Trust, and the national planning committee of CPRE. He was Chair of the Trust from 2010 to 2017.

Emmerson Critchley, founder of Emmerson Critchley Ltd, was appointed to Bury Town Trust in 2024 bringing a wealth of carpentry experience and special expertise in listed properties. With a career spanning 25 years, Emmerson’s journey began as a carpenter, where he discovered a passion for period properties and the unique challenges they present.

This passion led to the establishment of Emmerson Critchley Ltd, now renowned as a leading period property specialist in East Anglia. Emmerson’s notable projects in the Bury St Edmunds area include the restoration of Gregg’s on Abbeygate Street, Gregg’s on Cornhill, and a magnificent project on Angel Hill.

Emmerson’s expertise extends beyond restoration, as he is dedicated to preserving the architectural heritage of the region. His work not only restores but revitalises historic buildings, ensuring they remain integral parts of the community. Emmerson is also active in sharing his knowledge on heritage conservation and carpentry techniques.

With a commitment to excellence and a deep respect for history, Emmerson Critchley continues to set the standard for period property restoration and carpentry in East Anglia.

Ron is a retired solicitor and was appointed as a trustee of BTT in 2024, shortly after retiring as a partner with local law firm Ashtons Legal.

Ron’s career began in London in 1982 and he continued to specialise in property and secured lending after moving to Bury and joining what became Ashtons Legal in 2003. His keen interest in architecture and building preservation overlapped with his career throughout that period and he represented clients (and their funders) who were responsible for the acquisition and restoration of historic properties in locations such as Greenwich, Hoxton, Cambridge and more recently Bury itself. A common feature of those projects was imposing covenants to ensure that the buildings would be preserved for the benefit of generations to come. Ron is therefore well placed to advise BTT on such matters.

Ron worked closely with local architects, surveyors and planning consultants prior to his retirement and organised client tours of historic buildings in conjunction with Open House and similar organisations.

He and his wife continue to live near Bury town centre and Ron is also a member of the Bury Society and Bury Abbey Rotary Club.

Following an invitation from Jonathan Lloyd, Keith joined the board in August 2025. He was asked to take on the role of liaising with West Suffolk College for the Building Conservation Training Course, vacated by Alan Wilkinson.

Keith had an interesting and varied management career in the building/construction industry before retiring a few years ago.

He has a lifelong interest in buildings of all sorts and enjoys visiting historic sites and gardens.

In addition to other volunteering activities, he is chairman of a small charity in Thurston which has recently enabled the construction of a 54 unit care home.

Keith lives in Thurston and has lived in the Bury St. Edmunds area for nearly 40 years.