Historic Buildings Council - Membership

Members of the Historic Buildings Council

All positions are unremunerated. The time commitment for the Chair is approximately 3 days per month, with Members committing to approximately 1 day per month.

Joseph Birt
Chair, Feb 2025 - Jan 2028

Joseph is the Technical Director at FRSNI (Fire Risk Solutions Northern Ireland). He has considerable experience of building conservation methods both within Local Authority building control and in the private sector. He was the global President of the Chartered Association of Building Engineers and brings an in-depth understanding of the legislation which applies to the wider built environment and the conservation sector to this role. He previously served as Member on the Council from 2013 to 2016. He does not currently hold any other public appointments and has not undertaken any political activity in the past five years.

Dr Kyle Leyden
Member, Jul 2022 - Jun 2028

A native of Cookstown and formerly a barrister in the Irish and Northern Irish jurisdictions, Kyle is now Lecturer in Early Modern Visual Culture and Architectural History at The Courtauld where he also teaches Art and Heritage Law. In addition to providing legal advice on planning, architectural heritage and tourism issues, he has worked with many of the major heritage bodies of the UK and Ireland on research, public engagement and tourism projects. He served as a Trustee and Director of the Lissan House Trust in Cookstown, and has lectured in the History of Art and Architecture at the University of Notre Dame in London and University College, London. He has written on art and architectural history in a wide variety of publications, most recently as researcher and co-editor of Mark Girouard’s Dictionary of English Architecture and Hamish Miles’s catalogue raisonné of the paintings of Scottish artist David Wilkie. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Dr Donal McAnallen 
Member, Jul 2022 - Jun 2028 

Donal is Library & Archives Manager for National Museums NI (NMNI) and as chief custodian and public advocate for special collections he has managed a number of projects to raise the library’s profile including the digitisation of collections and generation of new content for the NMNI website, and the research and writing of Irish and Ulster-Scots trails for Ulster Folk Museum. Dr McAnallen joined HBC due to his local history experience. He is a committee member of the O'Neill Country Historical Society and Editor of the society's annual journal. He is also a part-time lecturer in History for University College Cork. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mr Liam McKinley
Member, Jul 2022 - Jun 2028

Liam worked for both the public and private sectors for up to 20 years on large scale capital infrastructure projects, including previously working as a Local Authority manager with responsibility for the procurement of Environmental and Educational capital projects. He applied for HBC due to his interest in history particularly around the North Antrim Coast and his desire to engage people in local history. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mr Callum Bowsie
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Callum is a Councillor on Newry, Mourne and Down District Council, where he chairs its Strategy, Policy and Resources Committee. He has experience of using government policy and the planning system to advocate for built heritage. He has a keen interest in local history, writing extensively on local buildings and their stories, which led to him establishing the Crossgar Historical Society. He currently holds a public appointment with the Department of Infrastructure as a Member with the Drainage Council for NI (unremunerated), and the time commitment is 4 days per annum. He has undertaken political activity in association with the DUP as a Councillor.

Mr Des Cairns
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Des has his own architecture practice, is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists, Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Building and an Accredited Conservationist, in addition to holding full membership of the Institute of Historic Building Conservation. He has extensive experience in leading on a wide spectrum of projects, including churches, domestic and commercial properties, covering design, conservation, and project management. These projects have involved adaptive reuse, refurbishment, extension and new build. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mrs Katherine McClean
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Katherine is currently the Built Heritage and Capital Projects Manager at National Museums NI, responsible for the conservation and management of a diverse estate of over 100 buildings. This role often involves balancing maintenance and conservation needs of the heritage buildings against wider operational and infrastructure requirements. She is a Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Accredited Specialist Conservation Architect with over 20 years' experience in architectural conservation, heritage management and project delivery. She previously worked in specialist architectural conservation practice leading on the repair, restoration and conservation of a wide range of historic buildings and monuments. She does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mrs Heather McGuicken
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Heather is the current Director and Accounting Officer for the NI Museums Council, where she is responsible for governance, financial oversight, project development and securing external funding to support the sector. She has worked throughout the museums sector, including as Collections Operations Manager at National Museums NI and as Manager of the North Down Museum. She does not currently hold any other public appointments.

Ms Nina McNeary
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Nina is a Senior Engagement Manager at The National Lottery Heritage Fund. She has a professional background in archaeology, heritage funding and community engagement, with experience working across the heritage sectors in Ireland and the UK. Throughout her career she has worked with communities, owners and partner organisations to revitalise historic buildings and secure sustainable futures for heritage assets. She has extensive experience of the church heritage sector and a longstanding personal interest in vernacular architecture and traditional earth-built buildings. She does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Miss Nikki McVeigh  
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Nikki is Programme Manager with the Heritage Council working on the Shared Island Heritage Networks Programme. She was previously Chief Executive of Ulster Architectural Heritage, where she led the organisation’s strategic development, and has also worked with the National Trust as Senior National Consultant for Heritage and Climate. She is an Expert Advisor to the Ministerial Advisory Group for Architecture and the Built Environment and a member of the National Lottery Heritage Fund’s Northern Ireland Committee. She is currently undertaking doctoral research on built heritage at risk in Northern Ireland. Her interests include architectural conservation, heritage-led regeneration and climate resilience. She does not currently hold any other public appointments.

Mr Tony Monaghan
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Tony is a chartered Town Planner and holds the position of Regeneration Manager at Derry City & Strabane District Council. He is involved in the design and delivery of regeneration projects and initiatives across the District, working closely with a range of stakeholders in the public, voluntary and private sectors. He has experience in the management and delivery of heritage-led regeneration projects within an urban and rural context, as well as the development of Council-led policy initiatives including the Council’s Heritage Plan. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mrs Jenny O’Donnell
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Jenny is a qualified architect with extensive experience in the conservation of historic buildings in both England and Northern Ireland. Her career has focussed on the repair, conservation, adaptation and extensions to historic buildings. She has recently retired from Derry City and Strabane District Council where she was Project Manager leading on the delivery of a number of complex heritage led regeneration projects including the new DNA Museum at Ebrington, Derry. She does not currently hold any other public appointments.

Mr Roger Perott
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Roger is an RIBA accredited Specialist Conservation Architect and founder of C60 Architects in Belfast. He is the co-chair of the RIBA Conservation Register Steering Group which oversees its conservation accreditation scheme. He has been the lead designer and project manager on a range of high profile developments including Ulster Rugby’s Affidea Stadium. He does not currently hold any other public appointments.

Mr Alan Ross
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Alan is a Senior Building Surveyor within the National Trust. He works closely with multi-disciplinary teams including conservation, architects, engineers, planners, property managers and external stakeholders. He is a Chartered Architect with over twenty years professional experience specialising in the surveying, conservation and management of historic and listed buildings across N Ireland. He has also served as a volunteer of the National Church’s Trust Grants. He does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Mrs Kerrie Sweeney
Member, Sept 2026 - Aug 2029

Kerrie is the CEO of Maritime Belfast Trust, a charity which owns key assets including Titanic Belfast and SS Nomadic. Over the last number of years, she has established and managed the Belfast Waterfront Task Group – representing landowners, government agencies and local communities. She led on the appointment of an urban architectural team and managed them throughout the process, providing insight into masterplans, research and policies, ensuring that key stakeholders bought into each phase of developing a vision and framework for an authentic and connected Belfast Historic Waterfront. She does not currently hold any other public appointments. 

Further information

Further information about the HBC is available at:

• Historic Buildings Council