Weald Parish Council Members
The Parish Council is chaired by Rosie Wood.
Rosie was born and raised in Sevenoaks. She moved to Bayleys Hill in 1995 and was elected to the Parish Council in 2002, becoming chair in 2011. She has three children and eight grandchildren, all living locally, and continues to be active in the property business established by her late husband. From the start of her time in the chair, Rosie has had the main aim of uniting the community around the “four pillars” of the church, school, pub and shop. Rosie says: “My ambition has been to make the Parish Council a friendly and approachable local government body, aware of the daily needs of the village while maintaining the upkeep and, above all, protecting our wonderful community.”
The deputy chair is Lucy Harris.
Lucy was married in St George’s Church and joined other family members in the village when she moved here in 1996. She worked in the insurance industry, specialising in the financial institutions sector, for more than 25 years and has two sons, now both at university. She became a Parish Councillor in 2011. Lucy says: “With three dogs to walk, every day is spent exploring local footpaths and the village, and this gives a great appreciation of our beautiful surroundings.”
The other members are:
Cathrin Beddoe
Cathrin has lived in Weald with her family for more than 20 years and has served on the Parish Council for much of that time. After a career in banking, she became a teaching assistant at Weald Primary School, where all three of her children were pupils. She has been the school’s office manager since 2010 and has for many years helped with Weald Brownies. She is the Parish Council representative on the Memorial Hall committee.
Steven Brennan
Steven worked in Human Resources in the City for 30 years. He moved to Weald in 2015 after living in Otford for several years and joined the Parish Council in early 2021. He is a keen bridge and tennis player and, in normal times, enjoys travelling.
Rupert Brunner
Rupert has lived in the village with his family for many years. He takes responsibility for the maintenance of the children’s play area and also organises the regular village litter picks.
Rachel Hewett
Rachel and her family have lived in Weald since 2016 and she joined the Parish Council in 2019. She has always enjoyed working or volunteering to support her local community and has trustee roles with local charities. Currently working in the NHS, she joined the Parish Council to contribute to village life and hopes to represent the needs of residents with young families. She deals with all matters relating to the Recreation Ground.
Roger Trapp
Roger moved to the village with his family in 2005 and began his involvement with community matters with the village’s thriving horticultural society, where he is currently the treasurer. He joined the Parish Council in 2017. He is a journalist and author and is responsible for the village website and other council communications. He also represents the council in dealings with the CPRE and other open-space and countryside organisations.
John Caird
John is the Parish Clerk and is therefore responsible for the general and financial administration of the Parish Council. He has lived in the village for more than 40 years and has been Parish Clerk since 2007. He can be contacted via wealdparishclerk@btinternet.com or on 01732 453943 for any questions relating to Parish Council business. He can also put residents in touch with individual parish councillors if required.