Meet the Abbey Team
The Abbey Museum is led by a board of trustees, each taking responsibility for different areas of the organisation. If you have any enquiries they would be pleased to hear from you.
Our accounts and policies, including Safeguarding, are available upon request.
Chairman of the Board of Trustees
Peter Wildman
After spending 35 years in the Royal Air Force serving in a number of countries in Asia and Europe, my wife and I spent 15 years living in Southern France before moving to Shaftesbury in 2018. I have considerable experience in training, conflict resolution and international relations, which serves me well as Chairman! My role is to oversee the running of the museum and its future development.
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Manager and Volunteer Coordinator
Penny-Jane Swift
My main role is to manage our team of volunteers who staff the museum. Other duties include managing the shop and day to day running of the museum. I am also education lead for the Abbey museum and Gold Hill Museum. If you are interested in joining us, we'd love to welcome you to join the team. Bringing history to everyone is one of my passions. Apart from my work at the museum, I also enjoy living history and traditional crafts like Dorset Button making.
Trustee for Digital Development
Stuart Edwards
I have lived in Shaftesbury since 2011 and am fascinated by its history. I was a civil servant for 30 years working on education, training and business policies, and have previously served as a trustee and chair of governors of an adult education college. I have a strong interest in the use of digital technology for education and training, and at the Abbey, alongside being deputy chair of trustees, I lead on digital developments. It can be difficult to imagine from the ruins left by Henry VIII just how impressive and powerful the Abbey once was. Technology offers a myriad of new opportunities to tell our story to the world.
Administrator & Events
Annabel Turner
I am the first point of contact in the Abbey office and keep in touch with our Friends membership and volunteers. I enjoy organising our season of events, from open-air theatre to herbal workshops and liaise with the wider community and local media to promote all we do at the Abbey. I love exploring Dorset on foot and my choir has often sung at the Abbey during the annual Fringe Festival.
Treasurer
Pete Ryley
After several (too many!) decades as an accountant and finance director, I retired in 2016 and became treasurer and company secretary of the Shaftesbury Abbey Preservation Trust.
I manage and/or record all grant funding applications, income and expenditures at the Abbey, plus our annual accounts. I am also the key contact on behalf of the Trust with the Charities Commission and Companies House for all trustee/director matters.
Trustee & Librarian
Debbie Jones
Since coming to Shaftesbury in 2019 I have had the pleasure of building up the Abbey’s research and lending library of over 850 books and many more papers. A “Library Circle” of interested people explores aspects of the Abbey’s history through reading and talks, and shares some of the tasks of sorting and cataloguing. My background in theology and a period in religious life helps me to connect sympathetically with the life of the community of nuns who lived here for over six hundred years, and I have greatly enjoyed the research for my two short novels about our early abbesses.
Archaeology Advisor
Julian Richards
A long-term Shaftesbury resident I am an archaeologist, writer, broadcaster and educator. I have had a long career in archaeology, working in the commercial sector, for English Heritage and on both TV and radio. In recent years I have worked freelance, involved in education, outreach and community projects. I have been involved with the Abbey for over two decades and now offer archaeological advice and lead projects, the most recent of which explored both the Abbey church and the Saxon and medieval town. I am a great believer in public engagement (for all ages) and was very happy that we could involve hundreds of local school pupils in our Abbey excavations.
Trustee for Collections
Jane Frederick
I have been passionate about working in the heritage sector for over 30 years and have a background in curation, collections management and community history. Since moving to Dorset in 2003, and striking out as a consultant, I have worked collaboratively and creatively with many different types of organisations including museums and galleries, theatres, historic houses and Cathedrals to make heritage and collections accessible through a diverse range of audience development, learning, community engagement and interpretation projects. As Trustee for Collections I lead on caring for and managing the Abbey’s collections and work with staff and volunteers to ensure that they can be enjoyed by visitors.
Trustee
Danny Gaught
After moving to Shaftesbury five years ago with my wife, I have been a volunteer guide at the Abbey Museum and Gardens for the past eighteen months, happily sharing tales of saints, stones, and Saxon intrigue!
I’m honoured to join the Board of Trustees, and I’m committed to supporting the museum’s role in preserving and sharing the Abbey’s history with the wider community in any way I can.
Trustee
Phil Proctor
Phil was architect for the museum building and continues to advise on building matters. He has been a trustee for many years.
Trustee
Sara Jacson
Sara Jacson is our longest standing trustee with responsibility for religious affairs.
Gardens
Julie Wood
I love plants! Most especially those that grow naturally wild and strong. I undertook the four-year degree in Herbal Medicine, qualifying in 2005, and have been practising as a Medical Herbalist since then. I am a member of the National Institute of Herbal Medicine (MNIMH).I am deeply involved with Shaftesbury Abbey museum having been working there as a volunteer in the gardens for 20 years. I helped design the Abbey gardens to include specialist medieval herbs, and I lead events, walks and talks, focusing on plant healing ancient and modern.
Trustee for Health & Safety
Jenny Daultrey
I was attracted by the gardens and captivated by the Nuns' story when I became a volunteer at the Abbey in 2025. It is delightful to see others equally enthralled when they visit the Abbey. The Abbey team includes staff and a willing group of volunteers. My role as a Trustee is to help deliver appropriate Health and Safety training for all involved, ensuring the Abbey Museum and Gardens is a safe and enjoyable place in which to volunteer - whatever the weather!