About Us
The Rame Conservation Trust was established as a charity in 1997 to protect and promote the heritage assets at Maker Heights for public benefit.
Our purpose as defined by item 3 of our governing documents (viewable in the documents page)
“The object for which the Trust is established is to preserve for the benefit of the townspeople of the Borough of Rame in the County of Cornwall and of the nation at large, whatever of the historical, architectural and constructional heritage may exist in and around the Borough (or District) of Rame aforesaid in the form of buildings (including any building as defined in Section 336(1) of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990) of particular beauty or historical, architectural or constructional interest.”
Put simply, the purpose of the Rame Conservation Trust is to conserve heritage assets for public benefit.
Located on the Rame Peninsula, South Cornwall, Maker Heights is designated as a place of outstanding heritage significance. This is a former military site which played an important role in the defence of Plymouth from the late 18th century. The site contains five scheduled moments and four grade II listed buildings.
Maker Heights also boasts environmental assets of local and national importance. It lies within the Cornwall Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Maker Heights also played an important social historical role in an initiative to provide children from deprived backgrounds respite from poverty. Nancy Astor, the first female to sit as an MP in the House of Commons, set up Maker Camp in the 1920s as a school holiday camp for Plymouth’s deprived children. The camp continued to operate in this way, including through the post-second world war period, until the early 1980s.
In recent decades, Maker Heights has become home to a creative community of artists and musicians. A number of social and other enterprises operate from the site, including the Maker Canteen, which is run by ex-River Cottage chef, Nick Platt.
The Trust
Ursula Stevenson
Chair
Ursula is a Chartered Environmentalist with nearly 20 years experience in environmental consultancy. She brings her experience of business development and project management to the Trust. In addition she has extensive experience working with statutory bodies, voluntary organisations, businesses and the public.
Chris Day
Treasurer
Chris is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Cost and Management Accounts and, although now retired, has spent much of his working life as commercial and finance director in a number of international publishing operations. He moved to the Rame Peninsula around 10 years ago and is now committed to helping the Trust preserve and improve this important historic site, to ensure accessibility for both the local community and the wider public. He is focused on ensuring the long-term financial viability of the Trust by installing proper accounting controls and policies.
Cathy Green
Cathy Green is an international aid consultant who specialises in community engagement and good governance. She has worked in many countries in Africa and Asia. Closer to home, at least five generations of her family have lived on the Rame Peninsula, enjoying and contributing to this beautiful and unique place. Cathy believes that the local community is pivotal to the creation of a sustainable future for Maker Heights. She will work within the Trust to strengthen community linkages, promote community participation and ensure that all interest and age groups can access and benefit from the site. Cathy also has a background in successful fundraising and will work with other trustees to help secure grant funding to support and sustain Maker Heights’ important heritage and natural landscape.
Dick Ogilvie
Dick lived on the Rame peninsula whilst at Plymouth Art College between 1978/1981 and loved it so much he moved here in 1985. His career has spanned professional photography, boat-building and, latterly, running a construction company in Kingsand / Cawsand, where he has renovated in excess of twenty properties including listed buildings. He has been involved at Maker since 2003 when he became a tenant of the Barrack Block. His three sons grew up to embrace the social and musical elements at Maker; two of them still play in successful bands. Now retired, Dick is keen to help the trust move forward.
Inés Rae
Inés is an academic working in research, administration and teaching at the University of Plymouth. She has links with creative organisations and charities across the South West and works collaboratively on disseminating creative solutions with varied groups of people. She supports Rame Conservation Trust with social media, photographic documentation and has recently joined the working group for the Trust’s most recent project the Millbrook Chapel of Rest.
Inés has lived on the Rame Peninsula for 11 years and believes strongly in supporting the Trust communicate its unique heritage, history and landscape and ensuring this remains accessible to the wider public.
Lyn Reid
Lyn is an Honorary Member – having invested in Maker Heights at the outset – with a strong conviction that community commons are important and beneficial. She has a scientific background, and skills resulting from working in varied scientific and administrative roles, serving as a school governor, and raising a family here on the Rame Peninsula. She will use her skills and efforts to bring good governance, collaborative working and holistic approaches to the Trust’s work.
Caroline Vulliamy
Caroline has qualifications and professional backgrounds in Art, Landscape, Wildlife and Historic Landscape – and worked for the past 20-plus years for English Heritage, now Historic England. She now works entirely with local community and environmental charities and is very familiar with Maker Heights and the Rame Peninsula. Caroline is keen to see the community fully benefit from managing, using and enjoying this very special Historic Environment, and to see Maker Heights increasingly used by local people who have loved the area for many years. Caroline will bring her skills, knowledge and experience to help Rame Conservation Trust fulfil its charitable objectives at Maker Heights.