Our Team

Ann Shadrake

Executive Director

Ann works closely with the Trustees of the charity and manages a team of volunteers. Ann works part-time across four days in the week and is responsible for managing and implementing the charity's strategy, membership, campaigning and policy work, publicity and financial administration. Ann has worked for the charity since January 2011. 

Ann has a MSc in Natural Resource Management and has worked for a number of Yorkshire based charities and the national park authority in management and fundraising roles. 

Penny Lowe

Administration Assistant

Working part-time across two - three days per week, Penny joined us in March 2017. Penny works on all aspects of membership administration - sending out welcome packs to new Friends of the Dales, keeping our records sorted and up to date, setting up Direct Debit payments, tracking our monthly income and expenditure and dealing with a hundred and one queries on all things Friends of the Dales! Penny has a wide range of experience and skills, having worked for the NHS in a financial role, for a Yorkshire education charity for 16 years, and also running her own business offering holistic therapy. 

Victoria Benn

Membership and Events Officer

Working part time, three days per week, Victoria joined us in April 2021. The aim of this new post is to have one person committed to promoting Friends of the Dales to different audiences so that the charity and the strength of its voice can continue to grow. Victoria is responsible for the management of our talks, walks, social media and publicity. Victoria is already well known as a feature writer across several regional publications and has also written two books about the Yorkshire Dales and its people and traditions.

Ann, Penny and Victoria are based at the charity's offices at Gargrave, near Skipton.

They can be contacted on 01756 749400 or by email

Ann Shadrake, Executive Director

Penny Lowe, Administration Assistant

                                            Victoria Benn, Membership and Events

Volunteers are essential to the delivery of our charity's work. Over the years volunteers together contribute hundreds of hours of unpaid work towards the events, putting together our flagship magazine - the Yorkshire Dales Reivew - and on membership and financial administration.

To find out more about volunteering, phone us on 01756 749400 or email: Victoria Benn

                                                                        Photo: Tree guard collection event March 2020 by Ann Shadrake

Bernard Peel is our longest standing regular volunteer, having played a big part over the last 10 years (and more) in supporting our membership administration and leading/helping at many of our walks and other events. 

We estimate that Bernard has put in over 3,500 hours of volunteering to support our charity - and counting!

Other regular volunteers 

Lynn Leadbeatter - who has supported our longstanding editor of the Review, Fleur Speakman over recent years and has now (mid 2017) taken on the Sub Editor role

Prue Harrison -  our new volunteer Editor of the Yorkshire Dales Review from August 2020 - welcome to Prue!  Prue takes over from Sasha Heseltine who has ably edited the Review since mid 2017.