Our Patron and Ambassadors
Our Patron:The Right Worshipful The Mayor of Bath
Our Young Ambassador
BBC Young Chorister of the Year 2023
At only 13 years old Belinda Gifford-Guy is a talented young soprano who has already been making a mark in the in the vocal music world from a young age. She began singing professionally at just 7 years old, and at the age 12, Belinda holds a prestigious vocal scholarship at Wells Cathedral School in Somerset. Belinda has been captivating audiences with her soaring soprano voice and natural musical ability since she was a young child chorister. She has been recognized for her talents with multiple music scholarships and awards. Belinda’s passion for singing and natural musical gifts position her well for a promising future as she continues to hone her craft.
Our Ambassadors
Edward Bayntun-Coward is the owner of George Bayntun, the antiquarian bookshop and bindery in Bath. He was the Chairman of the Bath Preservation Trust and is currently Chairman of the Holburne Museum, Vice-Chairman of the American Museum and Gardens and Trustee of various charities. He was High Sheriff of Somerset and is an active Deputy Lieutenant.
Robert Drewett is Senior Council for Womble Bond Dickinson. In addition, Robert is a trustee of a number of diverse charities, including the Royal Bath & West of England Society (of which he is chairman), Innovation for Agriculture, the Dorset & Somerset Air Ambulance, the National Eye Research Centre and the Langford Trust for Animal Health and Welfare. In 2014 he was President of the Grateful Society, a Bristol based charity that raises money to help older people to maintain their dignity and respect. In 2026, he became the Vice Lord Lieutenant of Somerset.
Suzi Digby OBE is an internationally renowned choral conductor and music educator. She has trail-blazed the revival of singing in UK schools and the community over three decades, founding organisations such as The Voices Foundation; Singing4Success (leadership and ‘accelerated learning’ for corporates) and London Youth Choirs. Her professional vocal consort, ORA Singers, won the Opus Klassik Best Ensemble of the Year, 2018. She also founded and conducts Voce Chamber Choir (a vibrant, young London-based chamber choir), which will celebrate its 20th anniversary in 2023.Suzi has been a trustee of Music in Country Churches, among other music and education charities. She is Past President of the Incorporated Society of Musicians and was Acting Music Director of Queens’ College, Cambridge (where she founded and ran the Queens’ Choral Conducting Programme). Amongst many TV appearances, she was a judge on the BBC1 hit show Last Choir Standing.
With an Indian father and an English mother, Jamila Gavin inherited two rich cultures which ran side by side throughout her life. She has produced collections of short stories, and several junior and teenage novels covering the whole age
range from six to sixteen. These include Grandpa Chatterji, which was short-listed for the Smarties Award and was dramatised for television on Channel 4 Schools, and The Surya Trilogy which were runner up and shortlisted for the Guardian Children’s Fiction Award in 1992. Coram Boy, which was winner of the Whitbread Children’s Book of the Year 2000, was adapted for the National Theatre, and performed in London and New York.
Having trained, extensively, as a musician before becoming a writer, music has played a central role in her life and a constant inspiration, as can be seen in much of her writing. So, it has been with great pleasure that in recent years, she has been approached by composers to provide text for them.
Marian McNeir has held a series of senior positions in local government. She was Mayor of Bath from 2000-2001 and served on the Council of the University of Bristol for four years, as well as on the University of Bath’s Council for nearly 10 years. She has taken a leading role in a variety of local organisations including the Holburne Museum, Arts Council for the South West, the Silver Ring Choir, Bridge Care, the Victoria Art Gallery and the Theatre Royal.
A solicitor in private practice who has been actively involved with charities and not for profit organisations throughout his working life. Usually as a trustee and often as the chair he has followed his interests which include arts-based charities, such as Bath Festivals, Bath Theatre Trust, and the Arnolfini in Bristol; health care organisations, such as Dorothy House Hospice Care, the Royal United Hospital NHS Trust and the mental health charity RICE.
Thomas has held local roles such as parish councillor and churchwarden. He spent over ten years on the Council of Management at the University of Bath and was a director of Bath Rugby in its first years as a professional rugby club.
He is currently the chair of the Bath Preservation Trust, a campaigning and heritage charity which also runs museums together with the Beckford Tower Trust and Herschel Museum of Astronomy. He also a chair and trustee of several grant making charities including the newly formed Somerset Supports Ukraine.
Thomas was the 960th High Sheriff of Somerset and appointed a deputy lieutenant of Somerset this year.
Ali is a Reporter and Presenter on TV and Radio who worked for the BBC in the west for over thirty years. She lives in Bath and has covered hundreds of stories in the city, North East Somerset and all over the west. Now a freelancer, she is using her experience in the commercial and charity world, working as an event host, media trainer and with different charities. She is also a Deputy Lieutenant for Somerset.
Trained as a visual artist, Bath’s MP Wera Hobhouse firmly believes in supporting people of all ages, particularly young people, to express themselves creatively. Passionate about the power of music to enhance young people’s self-confidence and wellbeing, Wera is the Chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Music Education. She is excited about supporting the work of Voices for Life. Wera loves singing in the shower herself.
