My family and I have lived in the village for forty years. Prior to that I lived in Henley, where I was a retained fireman. My three children went to local schools. I have been a Parish councillor for over twenty years and Chairman for most of that time. I have been one of the two Borough Councillors for Remenham Wargrave and Ruscombe since 2011, where I have undertaken several different roles. I am currently the Executive Member for the Environment, Leisure and Libraries. I am very active locally sitting on numerous bodies on both sides of the river including the Townlands Steering Group, School Governor at Robert Piggott Wargrave and a Wargrave Parish Councillor. I was a founder member of CPRW, the campaign to defend the green belt in Wokingham and have recently been appointed as a Board Member of CPRE Berkshire. I row at Upper Thames regularly. My career has been mainly but not exclusively reviving engineering enterprises on my own account or as part of public companies. I am a Chartered Accountant and went to Oxford University.
John Merkel - Deputy Chairman, Planning
Cynthia and I are delighted to have moved to such a vibrant village community and have been pleased to be a part of the Parish Council. We seem to have been constantly engaged with refurbishment and building since we moved to Green cottage in 2010. I was born in the United States but have been in London since 1988. I am a Lecturer in Conservation and Materials Science at University College London specialising in Conservation of metal artefacts, Archaeometallurgy, early metallurgical processes and sites in the Near East and South America. On the Parish Council I have been the main driver in the Neighbourhood Plan and have been the man on the ground in Marsh Mills.
Paul Sermon - Clerk
We have lived in the Parish since 2000, but my Remenham roots go back to Henry Surman. He was a Berkshire agricultural worker, who married Emma Eagleton of Assendon/Remenham in 1842. For a period the family lived in a cottage linked to Remenham Farm. I remain research active in a London University, but I also scull along the perimeter of the parish at least 3 times a week.
Darrel Poulos - Henley matters, Traffic, Footpaths
We moved to Remenham Hill in 1986. Like other parishioners, we were attracted by the lovely rural location. I have served as a parish councillor for over three years. I also serve on the Regatta Safety Committee in both Wokingham and Henley doing my best to protect our community and to create arrangements which allow us to live normal lives during major events. I also chair the Thames Valley Police Strategic Advisory Group which liaises and advises the TVP on a wide range o issues including policy, community relations, communication and policing in general. In addition, I have been a governor at Gillotts School for five years. My involvement with the village includes active involvement in the Remenham Thespians over the years and attendance at as many of the wonderful events we put on as possible. Through the Remenham Hill Residents Association, I have been part of the team that finally convinced Wokingham to lower our speed limit and to improve safety measures and transportation facilities on the hill. When I have time, I occasionally take on minor maintenance projects on behalf of the village.
Franky Cookson - Website, Transparency Code and GDPR
Since 2000, I have lived in a farm cottage in Middle Culham, at the ‘East End’ of Remenham. My background is branding and marketing - and I run a marketing consultancy, specialising in environmental initiatives. I love the views from my cottage, but worry about the A4130, with its traffic noise, speed and pollution, as well as litter thrown from vehicle windows. I’m actively involved in our collective efforts to address these problems. My main council task is to keep our website up to date, interesting – and compliant. We aim to keep you informed on news and events, including regular police notices and road traffic updates. I’m keen to keep the site full of colourful images of local events, so please send me your photos, as well as anything else that might add interest (parties, sports events, meetings, local history….). Any information you send will be treated with the discretion demanded by the GDPR guidelines.
Christopher Leeming - Planning
My wife, Caroline, and I have lived on Matson Drive for 37 years and we have two children Tom and Rosalind. My family, Sandersons and Leemings, have lived in Remenham since the early 1960's. I had an architectural practice for many years and undertook projects for the National Trust, amongst other distinguished clients. I contributed to the Planning Committee of the Henley Society, in its early days - and for several years I was proud to be a Remenham Parish Councillor. I was a foundation member of the Henley Partnership and chaired its Traffic Group, which created the long queues on White Hill. A beautiful catastrophe. My main interest is in the history theory and philosophy of architecture. In an effort to preserve local amenities I secured the survival of the Henley Pest House, the cinema in Henley and added 50 spaces to the Kings Road Car Park. To a great extent, my objective on the Parish Council is the restoration and preservation of the riverside landscape and the development of the Neighbourhood Plan.
Bill Ronald - Aston roads
Jacky and I moved to Aston 10 years ago where we discovered and refurbished our current home in the village.
Like many in the area we frequently count our blessings on the basis of our delightful rural environment.
My early career was in Chocolate at Mars Slough. More recently I have been a portfolio Non Executive Director for a variety of businesses and am a mentor with the FTSE Mentoring Foundation.
As a keen walker I roam our Parish marvelling at the scenery and cursing the litter louts.
As a frequent user of the lanes I am keen to see them appropriately maintained for cyclists and car drivers alike. As a councillor I will push to deliver