A community organisation, HBCA acquired The Town Hall in 2010 and is now responsible for its ongoing management and financial sustainability.

Primarily, The Town Hall is focused on the ongoing regeneration and economic development of Hebden Bridge and offers a range of subsidised services to enable the local community to thrive. The governance of the HBCA is managed by a board of volunteer trustees and the organisation is supported by around 400 Friends of The Town Hall.

Our Trustees

Jan Scott

Originally from Darlington in County Durham, Jan put down her roots in Hebden Bridge almost 50 years ago, raising her three children here, two of whom still live locally.

In the past four decades she has mainly worked as an administrator/manager for a number of small-scale arts organisations throughout West Yorkshire and also freelance as a web designer.

Jan became a member of the Community Association at the earliest opportunity and from 2013-19 she and her partner headed the team which staged seven annual piano festivals in the Town Hall, bringing performers of international repute to play in the Waterfront Hall.

Jan became a volunteer in 2018 and has been a volunteer co-ordinator for most of that time.

Alan Gardner

Alan has lived in the centre of Hebden Bridge and Wadsworth/Old Town for over a decade and has two sons in Old Town Primary School. Alan and his partner were amongst the first couples to be married in the Town Hall extension. Alan is a Chartered Building Surveyor with almost 30 years of experience in the historic built environment that covers charitable, statutory, large commercial, and smaller, private practice environments covering a wide variety of roles in relation to historic buildings including technical awareness, statutory and contractual experience, and extensive dealings with grant-giving bodies. Alan is keen to “put something back” into the local community based on his relevant experience. Alan’s previous examples have included pro-bono technical advice post-flooding and in relation to the consolidation of the ceiling and redecoration at the Picture House in Hebden Bridge.

Paul Guy

Paul has over 30 years’ experience in Human Resources as well as experience in running small businesses.

Paul now runs one of our local long-established small high-street businesses in Hebden Bridge and approached the Association to see if his skills would be of use to us and the wider community. They have been most useful.

Sue Barlow

Sue recently retired after over 50yrs in the healthcare arena and finding a need to keep busy ! Sue was born in Bury (Lancashire, sorry) but moved away in early 1980’s coming back 5 yrs ago to be with family again. 

Professionally Sue was a Consultant Radiographer and specialized in Clinical reporting. For the latter 12yrs as a Fellow on the faculty of Derby University teaching DXA scanning and clinical reporting in Osteoporosis. Sue has been a National Council member for the professional body (The Society and College of Radiographers for 16 yrs) and chaired the National Benevolent Fund for Radiographers who can award grants to individuals in the profession who had fallen on hard times. Sue’s spare time was spent as a Cub Scout leader gaining a 25yr long service medal from the Chief Scout.

Locally now, Sue is treasurer for the Calderdale Friends of Dorothy, secretary for Hebden Bridge Literary & Scientific Society and also spends some days as a volunteer on the front desk in the Town Hall.

Geoff Matthews

Geoff originates from Doncaster in South Yorkshire, but moved to Calderdale in 2002. He now lives in Old Town along with his wife Penny and has run his financial advice business as a tenant of Hebden Bridge Town Hall for over ten years.

During this time, he has been Chair of Hebden Bridge Business Forum, where he was heavily involved in the bid to win the Great British High Street award in 2016. He also co-founded Picture This Photography Group based in Old Town in 2011, and more recently Hebden Royd Walking Football Club.

Geoff felt the time was right to give something back to HBCA and therefore took up the position of Trustee in 2026.

Justine Brian

Justine runs Civitas Schools, founded in 2005 to offer after-school and weekend supplementary classes in English and maths to children in London who would not otherwise be able to access additional educational support. She oversees a team of 20 teachers, and hundreds of pupils each year, and leads on all aspects of the project. Previously, she was director of Debating Matters, the international sixth-form debating competition that privileged substance over style and which engaged schools from across the U.K. who didn’t participate in traditional schools debating. She believes in the importance of education and the centrality of debate in grappling with the big ideas that shape society. Having dropped out of school to get a job, she finally made her Mum happy by completing a degree in classical studies at Birkbeck College, University of London, as a mature student.

Graham Mynott: Executive Director of HBCA

The Company Secretary is Graham Mynott, Executive Director of Hebden Bridge Community Association. Graham has been an employee since January 2016 but is not a Company Director or Trustee of the Charity.