Sustainability team

Sean Woulfe

Director of Estates and Sustainability

A registered architect, Sean was in professional practice from 1989 to 2008, when he joined the Higher Education Sector and Kingston University. He is currently Director of Estates and Sustainability.

Sean leads all aspects of estate, property and department management. He is responsible for the long-term plan for the estate and the associated implementation of the planned programme of work while ensuring that the estate is legislatively compliant and continues to serve the changing needs of the University efficiently and effectively. He is responsible for leading on all aspects of operational sustainability

Sean led the RIBA design competition appointment of the 2021 Stirling Prize-winning Grafton Architects design team for Kingston University's new £60m Town House. The outstanding £30m refurbishment of the Kingston School of Art's Mill Street Building won the BREEAM award for the best Public Sector Project in 2021. These awards are testament to the seriousness with which the sustainability agenda is taken in Estates at Kingston University. The development and adoption of the wider University Sustainability Plan in 2021 underscores the University's commitment to carbon reduction across all its activities.

With a lifelong passion for good design, Sean is a trustee of the Higher Education Design Quality Forum (HEDQF), of which Kingston University is a founder member. He is also on the Executive Board of the Association of University Directors of Estates (AUDE). He is a member of the Green Register of Construction Professionals.

Nigel Heugh

Compliance and Operations Manager, Estates and Sustainability

Nigel is responsible for managing and developing this team and for a wide range of other operational and compliance matters across the University. He is eager to minimise the University's impact on the environment and is delighted to have such a great team to take the University further towards being a leader in sustainability.

Nigel has held this position since January 2015. Prior to this, he was Building Services Manager at the University of Greenwich, a position he held for six years. During that time, he developed a small team of engineers to implement an extensive range of energy and water saving projects, at a cost of around £1m p.a.

Before he moved to Greenwich, Nigel spent 22 years in the healthcare sector. He worked in engineering and management roles, both in the NHS and at a large private hospital. Nigel has a degree in Mechanical Engineering BEng (Hons), awarded by Kingston Polytechnic (now Kingston University) and has several other technical qualifications. He is a chartered engineer and a full member of the Chartered Institute of Building Services Engineers (CIBSE) and the Chartered Management Institute (CMI).

William Begg

Energy Manager, Estates and Sustainability

William is responsible for the delivery of the carbon management budget aimed to reduce the CO2 emissions associated with the University's operations. William has delivered a number of energy-efficiency projects across the University, which have contributed to the University's carbon reduction performance of 56% from 2005/6.

William is also responsible for managing energy contracts across the University and actively seeks to ensure value and opportunities for low carbon energy. In 2019, the University joined a pioneering green energy contract supplying 30% of the University's electricity from four large wind farms thereby providing 100% renewable energy.

William holds a degree in Environmental Science from University of Nottingham and a level one Energy Managers' qualification from the Energy institute. He is a full member of the Energy Managers Association and is currently working toward an MSc in Building Surveying.

William first joined the University in 2016 as the Energy Assistant, scoping and delivering carbon reduction projects. In 2019, he was awarded the Junior Energy Manager of the Year award by the EMA (Energy Managers' Association). Also in 2019, he was successful in his application for the role of Energy Manager at Kingston University.

Sivakhami Sivanesan

Biodiversity and Landscape Manager, Estates and Sustainability

Sivakhami is an associate member of the Charted Institute of Ecology and Environmental Management (ACIEEM). She has over 24 years' experience working and volunteering in the wildlife and conservation sector.

Sivakhami joined Kingston University in April 2014. As the Biodiversity and Landscape Manager, she leads work to create and implement policies and plans which lay out the University's aims and commitments for local biodiversity. The most important of these are Kingston University's Biodiversity Policy and Biodiversity Action Plan (KUBAP).

Sivakhami particularly enjoys working with the students, staff and the local community to maintain and increase the biodiversity at the University and beyond its borders.

Stephanie Todd

Strategic Operational Lead for Sustainability, Estates and Sustainability

Stephanie has an integrated masters degree in Environmental Sciences (MEnvSci Hons) from the University of Southampton. She is a full member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (IEMA) and chartered environmentalist (CEnv).

Prior to joining Kingston University, Stephanie worked as an Environmental Consultant and Regional Environmental Advisor (England) at QinetiQ Plc, a FTSE 250 Aerospace organisation. She has experience in providing environmental advice across air, land and sea domains and has managed Environmental Management Systems (EMS) certified to the standard of ISO14001:2015.

Stephanie joined Kingston University in February 2020. She leads on operational sustainability, focusing on minimising the University's environmental impact, whilst ensuring its operations remain compliant with environmental legislation. Stephanie is passionate about waste management and inspiring others to both work and live sustainably.

Victoria Pontifex

Sustainability Officer, Estates and Sustainability

Victoria joined the Sustainability team in December 2022 in the newly-created role of Sustainability Officer. In this new role, Victoria will be contributing towards the successful delivery of the operational elements of Kingston University's Sustainability Plan. She will help Kingston move towards its net zero carbon targets, with a particular focus on the implementation and maintenance of the Environmental Management System (EMS).

Victoria has a wealth of knowledge of Kingston University, the Estate and the Sustainability Plan from her previous role supporting the Estates and Sustainability Projects team as Projects Coordinator. She is also an active member of the Estate and Sustainability Green Impact Team.

Victoria is an Associate member of the Institute of Environmental Management and Assessment (AIEMA) and holds a BA (Hons) in Social Policy and Sociology awarded by the University of Kent.

Rachel Walls

Operations Coordinator, Estates and Sustainability

Rachel joined Kingston University as the Operations Coordinator in June 2020. Her role is to provide support to the Operations Team, coordinating key activities in the areas of estate compliance, operations, energy management, sustainability and biodiversity across the University.

Before working at the University, Rachel spent over 25 years in the social housing sector. She worked at several housing associations across south London as well as for Sustainable Homes, where she enthusiastically promoted a greener and more sustainable housing industry.

Rachel is a keen conservationist with 14 years' experience volunteering for a Brazilian rainforest conservation organisation known as REGUA. She manages the international volunteers and assists with the running of the Reserve's ecotourism programme. This includes organising a busy stand at the annual British Birdwatching Fair. Rachel was also a founding Trustee of UK charity Wader Quest for which she was also secretary for over five years.

Rachel's qualifications include a degree in Sociology BSc (Hons) awarded by Southampton University, NEA/City & Guilds Level 3 Award in Energy Awareness, and BREEAM Code for Sustainable Homes Assessor.