Brentford has appointed an advisory group to help drive forward the club’s work in sustainability.  

The newly launched group will help support the delivery of the club’s sustainability strategy and give strategic advice to Brentford’s staff and board on the subject. 

The group consists of five experts in the sustainability field who are external to the club. Their skills and experience correspond with the five pillars of Brentford’s sustainability strategy which are governance, climate, circularity, nature and engagement. The group will meet in person at least twice a year.   

The chair of Bees United (the Brentford supporters' trust) and Brentford board director Stuart Hatcher will be leading the advisory group. He said: “The challenges in sustainability can only be tackled through working together.

"Among our advisory group members, we’re proud to have members who possess a wealth of experience and expertise in sustainability with the added benefit that a majority of them already have close connections to the local community.  

“Their insight and challenge to the club will be invaluable in helping us make progress in sustainability for Brentford. I’m excited to be working with all the experts in the group.”  

Meet Brentford’s sustainability advisory group  

(L-R, top to bottom: Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh MBE, Marianne Matthews, Andrew Cox, Fran James and Professor Phil Stevenson)

Andrew Cox 

Andrew is a director at the London Borough of Hounslow (Council) with responsibility for overseeing the delivery of the council’s activity in response to the Climate Emergency which the council declared in 2019.

Andrew has always been interested in nature and the environment. He is passionate about sustainability and responding to and mitigating the impact of climate change and believes we all have a responsibility to make changes whether they be big or small.  

Fran James   

Fran writes the highly-regarded industry newsletter Football and Climate Change and is also a co-founder of Sustaina-Bees - the independent Brentford fan group focussed on environmental issues.

He is a carer for his wife who has multiple sclerosis. He was previously a civil servant in the UK Government.

Fran is excited to be in this group as it's a chance to get stuck in to an issue he’s passionate about, with the club he loves. 

Marianne Matthews  

Marianne is group head of responsible business and sustainability at Sky, one of Europe’s leading media and entertainment companies, part of Comcast Corporation.

Marianne is responsible for Sky’s responsible business approach and environmental impact, from the sustainability of its products and services to respecting human rights and maintaining Sky’s leadership position on climate change.  

Professor Phil Stevenson 

Phil is the priority leader of trait diversity and function at Royal Botanic Gardens Kew.

He is studying plant and fungal traits for the Science Priority to aid conservation, increase resilience to global change, and explore potential uses of plants and fungi for human health and well-being. 

He is the head of the Biological Chemistry research group with a focus on the ecological function of plant chemicals.

Phil holds a dual role as Professor of Plant Chemistry at the Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich.  

Professor Lorraine Whitmarsh, MBE 

Lorraine is an environmental psychologist, specialising in perceptions and behaviour in relation to climate change, energy and transport, based in the department of psychology, University of Bath.

She is director of the ESRC-funded UK Centre for Climate Change and Social Transformations.

She regularly advises governmental and other organisations on low-carbon behaviour change and climate change communication, was one of the expert leads for Climate Assembly UK, and lead author for IPCC’s Working Group II Sixth Assessment report.

Her research projects have included studies of meat consumption, energy efficiency behaviours, waste reduction and carrier bag reuse.