The WFGA Today

The WFGA is a registered charity (212527) run by a Board of Trustees.

In 2020 the WFGA took the decision to change it’s working name to the “Working For Gardeners Association”.  The Association feels that this better reflects the work that we do in the 21^st century, helping anybody interested in horticulture to increase their skills and experience.  We will still keep The Women’s Farm and Garden Association as our formal name and maintain the respect that guided those original aims.

The Board of the WFGA is well established and each Trustee is elected for 3 years under the edit of the Charities Commission.  Each Trustee brings different skills to the Board and everyone offers their services on a voluntary basis;

Chair – Sue Reed

Sue first encountered the WFGA when she took up a WRAGs placement in 2003. After a number of years working as a professional gardener, she moved into horticultural education and spent 12 years as a Lecturer and Programme Leader at Brinsbury College. More recently she took on the role of Internal Quality Assurance for the college’s horticultural department, in addition to working for City & Guilds, moderating horticultural qualifications and for Lantra, assessing apprentices. Sue is a huge advocate of the benefits of a career in horticulture and a passionate promoter of horticultural education.

Trustee – Christabel Boersma

Christabel’s enthusiasm for gardening at home, led to her helping friends and family and ultimately to the decision to retrain as a gardener in 2016. Having successfully completed the English Gardening School Diploma and a WRAGS placement at Chenies Manor, Christabel started her own small gardening business. In recent years, Christabel has invested much of her time in volunteer roles in her local community and most recently as the Editor of the WFGA Newsletter.

Trustee – Amanda Ponsonby

Amanda joined the WFGA as a Trustee in 2021.  Her early career was in politics, working for Geoffrey Howe and Margaret Thatcher.  Since then she has focused on developing and restoring her garden whilst engaging in a large number of community roles.  In April 2020 she became High Sheriff of Oxfordshire.  She is a founder trustee of The Rectory Society and is currently assisting with the Lord Lieutenant of Oxfordshire’s response to the Queen’s Green Canopy project in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee

Trustee – Daniel Cartwright

Daniel joined the WFGA as a trustee in 2023 however his links with the organisation do not start there. He has been a member of the WFGA for years and a long time supporter of their work, and in his capacity as Head Gardener at Winterbourne House and Garden, Daniel has supported many trainees over the years and has even employed some to join his team of horticulturists.
Daniel’s love of horticulture started when he was a child, he was often found gardening with his grandfather and even competed in (and won!) a number of vegetable growing competitions. He went on to train at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens, and later moved to nearby Winterbourne House and Garden where he worked his way up to Head Gardener. Today, Winterbourne Garden is a thriving 7 acre arts and crafts garden in the heart of Birmingham, filled with herbaceous borders, specialist glasshouses and trees and three National Collections.
Daniel retains a keen interest in historic landscapes and is also a member of the Landscape Advisory Committee for the Highbury Chamberlain Trust. He is a passionate advocate for the horticulture industry and those who work within it.

The office is staffed by two part-time administrators who support the Trustees and 17 Regional Managers.

Tracy Davies

Tracy is one of two administrators for the WFGA based at our Trull HQ.  She has worked for a number of Charities in the past and has also worked in administration in the medical field and in animal welfare both in the UK and overseas.  She has two dogs that take up a lot of time and enjoys taking walking holidays along with the family to the national parks in England and Wales.  She joined the WFGA in 2015 and loves the variety of work involved, including the financial aspects of the job, managing the NGS bursaries and the Christine Ladley Awards.

Julia Thorne

Julia is one of two administrators for the WFGA based at our Trull HQ.  She has a wide experience in charity and business administration, computing, logistics, managing and planning graduate recruitment to name a few areas of speciality in her career.  She also has a passion for craft and runs her own glass jewellery business.  She has worked for a charity outsourcing company, with responsibility for the administration of a 300 year old charity.  She joined the WFGA in 2016 and enjoys the variety of work.  Julia is also our Workshops and Practical Skills Days co-ordinator and planner.