Peter Nixon

Governor Profile

Peter has over 40 years’ land management and conservation experience, initially as a land agent in private practice and a national park, and with the National Trust from 1985 to October 2017 where he became Chief Agent and Director of Conservation. He had strategic responsibility for National Trust estate management and related conservation, environmental and commercial aspects covering over 1000 properties in England, Wales and Northern Ireland comprising 600,000 acres, 775 miles of coastline, over 25,0000 buildings, 1500 farm tenancies, 5000 cottage tenancies, 1000 commercial tenancies and all recreational access and sporting activities.

In addition to Peter’s role at Harper Adams he is a trustee of the National Trust’s pension scheme and a trustee of the Clinton Devon Estate’s conservation trust in East Devon. In recent years he has been a non-executive board member of Forest Holidays LLP as nominated member acting for the Forestry Commission, a member of the councils of the Royal Agricultural Society England and the Country Land & Business Association, and previously served as a member of the Prince’s Rural Leadership team and the Government’s Rural Climate Change Forum.

Peter has a degree in Land Economy from Cambridge University, is a retired Fellow of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors and a Fellow of Royal Agricultural Societies. He is interested in all aspects of land use and the countryside: social, environmental and economic, and enjoys a wide range of outdoors activities.  He has received the Octavia Hill Medal for services to the National Trust and an MBE for services to conservation and the National Trust.