Currently The Hypatia Trust is in the process of developing new beginnings. Shorn of the direct responsibility for the care of Hypatia’s major collections - our future is for remaking. A number of valuable and unique archival collections remain, and the digital future will ensure an expanding forum for The Hypatia Trust’s work.

Those who will help shape that future are our friends and supporters – some as far away from Cornwall as Japan, Washington, Germany, Australia and New Zealand & places in between. But those, who will ensure and sustain The Hypatia Trust, will be local to Penzance, West Cornwall. Our consulting team includes the following and will expand and contract as needed and as willing.


Jen McDerra - Director

Contact: jen@hypatia-trust.org.uk

Cat Belshaw - Director of Operations

Cat is a photographer, writer, editor, and not-for-profit leader based in Cornwall and Toronto, Canada. Her work is rooted in the art of noticing, documenting, connecting and sharing alternative perspectives on the world -- perspectives often overlooked due to their marginality, smallness, and hiddenness.

She leads the fund development and government relations activities for one of Canada’s largest Indigenous social services organizations and was a founding member of the Festival of Literary Diversity. Her photography has been featured in PhotoEd Magazine, Women Street Photographers, Decode Gallery, and Gallery 44, among others.

In her role at The Hypatia Trust, Cat supports the development and implementation of our vision and mission, and works closely with team members, partners, and funders to ensure that we have the systems and resources in place to carry it out.

Contact: catb@hypatia-trust.org.uk

Lally MacBeth - Events

and Communications Lead

Lally is an artist, writer and curator based in Cornwall. Her work takes in history, folklore, performance, ritual and artifice – and the links between high and low culture. She is the founder of The Folk Archive and co-founder of Stone Club. Her book The Lost Folk will be published by Faber in June.

In her role at The Hypatia Trust, Lally runs our events programme and heads up our social media.

Contact: lally@hypatia-trust.org.uk

Alice Mount - Engagement and Partnerships Lead

Alice is a researcher, writer and editor working across various art, performance, social-research and archival projects. With a background in literary studies, oral history and life-writing, her current areas of interest include hidden social histories and contemporary feminist writing practices. 

Alice develops and maintains The Hypatia Trust's collaborative partnerships and facilitates engagement with our collections, resources and our spaces. Alice is also managing editor of our online archive, Women in Cornwall

Contact: alice@hypatia-trust.org.uk


Marisela Chapman - Bookshop Manager

Marisela is a writer, editor, and content designer, as well as an Integral Master Coach™  a strategic business leader, and mentor. Since moving to Cornwall in 2023, Marisela has worked closely with the Hypatia Trust and manages our Women in Word bookshop.

Contact: marisela@hypatia-trust.org.uk

Maggi Livingstone - Lead Archivist

Maggi Livingstone - Lead Archivist

Maggi is our lead archivist, archiving the correspondence, notebooks and original manuscripts in The Hypatia Trust collections so that they can be preserved for the long term and made accessible for future generations to enjoy.

Contact: maggi@hypatia-trust.org.uk

Linda Cleary

Linda founded the Women in Word Literary Festival and ran it from 2023-2024, it was a celebration of women in word, featuring conversation, readings from established and emerging women writers, talks, events and workshops, poetry films by women and networking opportunities.

From 2019 to 2022 Linda curated a Literary Fiction department for Hypatia Publications of which there were four releases.

Linda is a writer herself and runs the Free Writers Centre as a literary consultant, writing coach, editor and running writing courses.

Contact: linda@hypatia-trust.org.uk


HYPATIA TRUSTEES

Katie Kirk - Chair of the Trustees

Katie developed an early interest in the visual and performing arts, nature, charities and campaigns; themes which have continued to drive her work. Katie applies herself to grassroots project development, helping groups to focus their ideas and to form project plans, which is how she first became involved with The Hypatia Trust. Her creative appetite has led to her to form a folk duo, lead creative writing workshops at The Writers’ Block, perform poetry, stories and songs with The Story Republic, Wildworks, Golden Tree, Perthi Kov and the Minack and more.

Read more about Katie here





Miki Ashton
Project Co-ordinator of The Gardeners’ House

Doreen Pinfold
Retired Head of Library & Information Services at Falmouth University, Cornwall

Philip Budden
Retired dental surgeon, Treasurer of the Trust

Andrew Bell, OBE
Retired Company Director, Cornwall

Dr Jane Royle
Retired Consultant in Public Health, Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly

Dr Judith Davidson
Retired Principal Clinical Scientist, Manchester Royal Infirmary, Manchester University NHS Foundation Trust


+ VIEW HYPATIA'S FRIENDS REMEMBERED:

John Ryton Andrews, 2008

Wilhelmina Barns Graham, 2004

Andrea Garrihy, 2016

Dr James (Jim) Gibson, 2005

Lady Mary Holborrow, 2017

Jessica Mann, 2018

Frances Partridge, 2004

Dr Elspeth Pope, 2013

Hilary Richings, 2015

Professor Charles Thomas, 2016

Hon David Treffry of Place, 2000

Eva Tucker, 2015

Marion Whybrow, 2015

Veronica Janas, 2016

Esme Stanford, 2017

Sarah Fermi, 2018

John Sansom, 2019


A BIG THANK YOU TO:

We are immensely grateful to the following people and organisations who have made significant donations to The Hypatia Trust since its foundation in 1996.


+ VIEW CURRENT & ONGOING SUPPORTERS:

Budden family (Cornwall)

The 20-40 Project (London and Cornwall)

Andrews-Westlake family (Exeter, Devon & Cornwall) 2009

Community Chest (Penwith Community Development Fund) 2006

Cornwall Council (Arthur Q Couch Fund)

Cornwall Counselling Service (C & J Leigh)

Eric and Deirdre Dare (Truro)

Exeter University Special Collections & Libraries

Healthy Living Initiative (Small Grants fund) 2006

The Heritage Lottery Fund (History 51) 2012-13

The Heritage Lottery Fund (Morrab Stables development) 2017

Home Front Recall (2006) Heritage Lottery Fund (The Land Girls of Cornwall)

Norna Jamieson (London & Shetland) and family

Daphne & James Laing of St Andrews Scotland

The Millennium Fellowship Programme (2000) National Lottery

Friends of the Morrab Gardens Penzance

Penwith District Council

Penzance Town Council

Dr Elspeth Pope and Professor James Holly and their family 2013

Tabb House Publishers (Padstow) 2012

The Tanner Trust (UK and Cornwall) 2007, 2013, 2016

Architectural Heritage Fund 2018

Langdale Trust 2018


The Hypatia Trust is one of very few organisations in the UK dedicated to promoting education and research in women's studies, and supporting the intellectual endeavours of women so that their contributions are maximised.