Verwood u3a are proud to announce three of our members are New Verwood Town Councillors.

Councillor Chris Latham

I grew up in mid Cheshire and spent my career in quality control in aerospace and defence. From 1965, as an MOD apprentice, I got a bachelor’s degree in metallurgical engineering at Liverpool and a Master’s in Iron and Steel Technology at Sheffield. I worked at the Royal Ordnance Factory in Nottingham as Chief Metallurgist and Assistant Head of Quality. I moved to Dorset in 1984 before moving to Somerset in 1991 as Head of Quality Assurance at Fairey Hydraulics. This involved worldwide travel including stints working in the USA and Italy. I served on national and international committees including as Chairman of the UK Aerospace Scheme Management Board. After retiring from full time work, I joined the United Kingdom Accreditation Service as an aerospace technical assessor, returning to Dorset in 2016 before finally hanging up my laptop on my birthday in 2022. I have been married for 51 years; my wife having been part of the team to develop the Somerset Special Needs programme for children with dyslexia. We have two sons and three grandsons. I liked to play badminton and watch football but now am happy to potter around the garden and enjoy the Verwood U3A.

Councillor Mark Hardaker

Originally from Keighley, West Yorkshire, I moved to Verwood with my wife in summer 2018, having spent the previous thirty years living overseas in Germany, Belgium, USA, Hong Kong, Dubai, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, where I held senior roles in multinational chemical companies. I was educated at Oxford University and hold a Master of Science degree. I am an active amateur astronomer and the treasurer of
Fordingbridge Astronomers, where I have raised money locally to build an observatory locally for outreach activities. I am a member of Butterfly Conservation, monitoring the performance of our local insects under changing climate conditions and a member of the Commission for Dark Skies, a national body for the protection of darkness for our wildlife.
I run my own consultancy business focusing on business management. I am also a non-executive director of the DuPont UK Pension Fund. I joined the Town Council to better understand and promote its activities to the wider public and to help give something back to this community I now call home.

Councillor Ted Mason

I have resided in Verwood for seven years, living close to my son who is very active as a coach for Verwood Football Club. My daughter is a science teacher who is very involved in the Downs Syndrome Support organisation. I am an active member of the Verwood U3A, and also regularly perform at several folk clubs. I enjoy gardening, writing and Chinese painting. Most of my working life has been in Education as a teacher. I was also a school governor, a Special Education Coordinator and a leader of the Special Education Group of a pyramid of schools. Before retiring to Verwood, I spent seven years in central China working as an Educational Management Advisor, and as a writer for a daily newspaper.
My particular interests for Verwood and Three Legged Cross are in areas of planning, the environment and youth.