Richard Barley appointed to Board of Trustees

Director of Horticulture for The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, Richard Barley, has been appointed to the Board of Trustees at the National Garden Scheme.

Born in the Western District of Victoria, in Australia, Richard Barley pursued various roles in the agriculture sector before joining the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne in 1980. Completing a Bachelor of Applied Science (Horticulture) at Burnley College (University of Melbourne) in 1991, he then took on responsibility for the provision of guidance to the state of Victoria’s many regional botanic gardens.  From 1992 he moved into the role of manager and then director of the Royal Botanic Garden’s Melbourne garden site.  He held this position until 2010, when he was appointed CEO of Open Gardens Australia.

In 2013 he moved to the UK to take up the new position of Director of Horticulture for The Royal Botanic Gardens Kew with responsibility for overseeing the management of Kew’s botanic garden and arboretum, display glasshouses, nurseries and the School of Horticulture.  His role was expanded in 2015 to include Kew’s Learning and Participation, and Visitor Operations activities.  Richard has had responsibility for various improvement projects at Kew since arriving, including the major restoration of the Temperate House, development of the Great Broad Walk Borders, the Children’s Garden and the Agius Evolution Garden (both opened in 2019).

Commenting on his appointment as Trustee to the National Garden Scheme, Richard says: “I am very excited to be joining the National Garden Scheme as a Trustee this year, and feel privileged to be able to contribute to the wonderful work of this organisation in support of worthwhile charities.  Britain is blessed with an extraordinary richness of gardens unparalleled in the world, and the generosity of garden owners in opening their gates for public enjoyment and charitable benefit is superb.  I look forward to sharing my experience, and supporting the wider National Garden Scheme team through the next chapters of its successful story.”

Chairman of the Trustees at the National Garden Scheme, Martin McMillan OBE adds: “We are delighted to welcome Richard as a Trustee and look forward to his wise counsel and in-depth horticultural and operational knowledge to help shape the development of the National Garden Scheme in the years ahead.”

For more on the National Garden Scheme’s Trustees click here