At the March Board meeting of the Wimbledon & Putney Commons Conservators the Chairman, David Devons, expressed his sadness at the retirement on 5 April of two of the elected Conservators, Elizabeth Witts and Tony Drakeford.

The Chairman commented, “Elizabeth Witts has been a Conservator for 27 years, and has been Chairman for eight years, made up of two periods of five and three years, respectively. She has an enormous experience and knowledge of the working of the Commons, which has been of immense value to the Board. Her determination, perseverance and sound judgment has constantly kept the Conservators on the right course. She has frequently brought the Conservators down to earth by asking whether a considered course of action was “good for the Commons”. This has earned her the epithet “the conscience of the Commons”. As Elizabeth will not be moving out of the area, I am sure that the Office and the Board will continue to receive her comments and advice!”

“Tony Drakeford has been a Conservator for 12 years and Vice-Chairman since 1997. Before I became a Conservator, also in 1994, I had known of Tony simply as “the butterfly man”. This description was clearly incomplete because Tony is just as knowledgeable on birds, insects, fish, trees and plants; if it moves or grows, Tony knows all about it. He is also well-known for his frequent public walks on the Commons, which are both informative and amusing. Even if Tony does move to Kingston, I hope he will still keep an eye on the Commons.”

March 17, 2006