Trustees

Tim Parker - Trustee Chair

Tim joined the NAS in May 2008 and enjoys the challenge of solving the puzzle of what something was, how it was used and why it was there. As a lapsed recreational diver, his focus is coastal and foreshore archaeology, such as the Forton Lake Project, which he volunteered on and also provided the material for his Part 2 Project. He is also very interested in how technology can contribute to archaeology. He has supported the NAS Education Programme as an Assistant Tutor for several years and volunteered to become a trustee to become more involved with the society and to start to give something back to an organisation that he enjoys being part of.

Tim lives in Exeter and previously served as a Royal Naval Engineer Officer, but is now enjoying a second career as a cyber and information security consultant. Tim became chair at the 2020 AGM in November 2020, taking over from Brian Minehane.

Jackie Riley - Treasurer

Jackie is a chartered accountant with a career that has focused on financial services and regulatory reporting.  Alongside ensuring the rigour of processes and content for reporting to UK financial regulators, she has also had responsibility for the implementation of improved financial procedures and documentation.  A keen sailor, she has been a Cowes resident since 2003. 

Looking to put something back into the town and sailing community, Jackie became a Trustee of Cowes Town Waterfront Trust in 2018 and non-executive director of Cowes Yacht Haven Limited in 2019.  Wishing to expand this voluntary combination of maritime interest and finance, Jackie joined NAS in 2024 as Trustee and Treasurer.

David Johnston - Trustee

Dave Johnston is a senior tutor for NAS, running NAS courses around the UK and the world. He is an avocational underwater archaeologist and sports diver who has learned his archaeology through the NAS training scheme (currently Part 3, working towards Part 4) and by using that training to get involved in various projects. He is a member of the Warship Hazardous Prize Designated Wreck Project Team and also volunteers with the Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology.

Dave has also run NAS projects at Stourhead Gardens. A PADI Dive Master and BSAC OWSI, he is boat officer and webmaster for the NASAC Dive Club and is on the committee and is webmaster for the Association of Protected Wreck Licensees (www.protectedwrecks.org.uk). In order to pay for the archaeology he occasionally he finds time for his day job, running microscopes for the Medical Faculty at Southampton University. He is now a NAS senior tutor and member of the NAS Management Committee.  

Dr Damian Robinson - Trustee, Chair of Publications Sub-Committee

Damian is Professor of Maritime Archaeology in the School of Archaeology at the University of Oxford, where he is the Director of the Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology (OCMA). He is a Classical Archaeologist who is interested in ancient seafaring and seafarers in the Mediterranean and beyond. His research concentrates on port cities and their nautical assemblages and particularly on those of the submerged landscapes of Alexandria and the Canopic coastline of Egypt, where he works with the Institut Européen d’Archéologie Sous-Marine. Here Damian is part of the team examining the submerged sites of Canopus and Thonis-Heracleion and the Portus Magnus of Alexandria. 

Damian became a Trustee of the NAS as he feels that the society occupies a unique niche in the community of people passionate about the maritime world, through providing education, advocacy and experiences, and wants to help it to thrive. 

Damian is chair of the NAS Publications Sub-Committee.

Alison James - Trustee

Alison joined the Board of Trustees in 2018 having started her career in maritime archaeology with the NAS many years ago. Alison is a Director and Project Manager at MSDS Marine with extensive experience in the management of historic shipwreck sites, volunteer involvement, community engagement and education initiatives.

Previously Alison spent ten years with Historic England managing England’s protected wreck sites and working with the licensed teams and volunteers who work on the sites. Prior to this she worked for Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology (now the Maritime Archaeology Trust) running their education and outreach initiatives. Alison is also a PADI Open Water SCUBA Instructor.

Alex Denny - Trustee

When Alex isn’t in a suit as Head of Investment Trusts at Fidelity International, he is either muddy or wet indulging his passions for diving, the sea (and great outdoors), wildlife and history. Alex is a BSAC instructor and technical diver who joined NAS in 2016 to learn more about the UK’s maritime past and to help play a part in conserving it. Alex is also a trustee of the charity MARINElife, and the FIL UK Pension Plan, specialising in Governance, and has degrees in Chemistry and Law. 

Geoff Downer - Trustee, Vice Chair, Chair of Strategy Sub-Committee

Geoff has been diving since he was 15, and an avocational maritime archaeologist since his university days. His experience ranges from 30 m (metres) visibility diving on roman shipwrecks in South Eastern Sicily to 30 mm (millimetres, that is not a typo!) visibility diving inside Poole Harbour.

Geoff spent 3 seasons diving in Sicily with NAS past President, A J (Toby) Parker, and has worked in UK waters at Yarmouth Roads and extensively on the Studland Bay wreck project over 28 years!  Recent volunteering with the NAS has included the Chesil Beach and Hazardous Prize projects. Geoff has been topping up his studies as well, now holding the NAS Certificate in Maritime Archaeology, and is an NAS Tutor.

Geoff has been volunteering with the NAS for the last year and is currently deeply involved in the Save the London publicity team.  He brings to the Executive Committee his business management skills and career experience in marketing, having run marketing services businesses and a consultancy which specialised in marketing strategy, data driven communications and customer management. Geoff acts as the Vice-Chair of the NAS.

Claire Hallybone - Trustee

Claire has been a member of the NAS since 2005 and during this time has been involved in a number of projects including the excavation of Oakbank Crannog in Loch Tay, Bouldnor Cliff Mesolithic site near the Isle of Wight, the Colossus protected shipwreck in the Scilly Isles and the survey and recording of the John Preston slate wreck in the Sound of Mull.

Claire joined the Board of Trustees in 2016 and helps co-ordinate member led projects.

Claire is a BSAC Instructor and Director of Wreckspeditions Dive Charters where she plans expedition trips for divers to explore remote locations in the south west of Scotland.

Previously Claire spent ten years with Thames Water managing the company’s impact on archaeology and heritage and working on many projects on the foreshore of the River Thames.

Cat Holt - Trustee

Cat is a museum professional who specialises in maritime collections. She has a degree in Marine Archaeology from Bournemouth University, and a Master’s in Museum Studies from the University of Leicester. Cat has worked on several significant maritime collections including the Invincible Collection at Chatham Historic Dockyard and acts as a consultant for The Shipwreck Museum in Hastings.

Passionate about preserving maritime heritage both above and below the water Cat completed an apprenticeship in Historic Ship Conservation with National Historic Ships UK and now acts as a mentor for other students undertaking the course.

Cat initially joined the NAS in 2008 and has now achieved her Certificate in Maritime Archaeology finding the NAS training courses a valuable source for continued professional development as well providing her the opportunity to get involved with some great projects and trips.

Michael Curtis - Trustee

Dr Mike Curtis is an Honorary Fellow in the School of Heritage and Culture at the University of Leicester, and Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of My Ancient World Learning Ltd, which specialises in lifelong learning in archaeology, ancient history, and classical studies. A landscape and coastal archaeologist, his research focuses on the maritime landscapes of the Mediterranean during the Hellenistic, Roman, and Early Byzantine periods, with particular emphasis on the ports, harbours, and coastal infrastructure of Roman Crete and their role within wider Mediterranean maritime networks.

His research interests also include the Roman maritime landscape of Britain and the Iron Age and Roman landscapes of Northamptonshire. Michael is co-editor of the Cretan Studies: New Approaches and Perspectives in the Study of Hellenistic, Roman and Early Byzantine Crete series, published by Oxbow Books. He has published widely on Hellenistic and Roman Crete and its maritime landscapes and regularly lectures on this and the archaeology of Roman Britain, and is committed to promoting public engagement with archaeology and underwater cultural heritage through research, education, and outreach.

Evelin Erős - Trustee

Evelin is an Archaeologist and Geotechnical Surveyor with extensive experience across the UK and Europe. Her work bridges field archaeology, geophysical survey, and digital heritage documentation. She specialises in 3D scanning and printing for museums and archaeological institutions, combining advanced technologies with conservation and research in crisis management of finds. Evelin has contributed to numerous heritage and environmental projects in both commercial and academic contexts, integrating drone and geophysical methods into archaeological practice.

Beyond her professional work, Evelin actively volunteers on archaeological projects in Spain, Greece, and France, supporting international collaboration and cultural heritage preservation.

Paul Harwood - Trustee

Paul has been a NAS member since 2018. He first joined because he wanted to combine two long-time interests in archaeology and diving. Pauls has been diving for 20 years (mostly in the South China Sea) and first worked as a volunteer on a dig in 1981! Since joining NAS he has worked on the Sandwich and HMS Natal projects.

By profession, Paul works in technology and software. He has worked for Nokia and Google mostly in networks but now mostly works as a consultant in GIS and VR. He has completed some courses with IoA at UCL on GIS for archaeology.

Paul is especially interested in working with the NAS team on projects and strategy.

Susannah Hart - Co-opted Trustee 2026