Jon Capes
I was fortunate to move to Hilton in 1999 and live here with my wife and two children, who attend schools locally. Hilton is a wonderful place to raise a family and recent events have shown us the real benefits of being part of such a community, located in such a beautiful setting.
Having recently retired, I feel I now have the time to be able to repay the benefits I have received from living in our village, and look forward to representing the views and wishes of the community in my role as a Parish Councillor.
Rob Dulstone
My family moved to Hilton in early 2021, however my daughter has been a volunteer at Monach Farm stables for many years, so I have been a frequent visitor to our beautiful village. Having quickly settled in, I’ve been impressed by the thriving friendly community and have been spending time working on the wonderful Community Garden, assisting with the games evenings on the Green and participating in the local speedwatch team.
In my professional life, I worked in the financial sector, managing technology systems, and building and managing technology teams. I have travelled extensively, and lived in Chicago, Italy and Poland. I am fortunate to have had the opportunity to retire early, so I am enjoying spending time helping within the community.
Ettore McCarthy
I joined the Parish Council in 2021 for my second term, having served nearly 5 years during my first. My wife, Fiona, and I moved to Hilton in 2007 with our son Tom. Very soon after, our daughter Francesca was born. I have always been village focussed, previously having been on the Hilton Feast Week & Hilton Ball committees for several years.
My professional life is in aviation, working for easyJet as a Captain on the Airbus fleet. In my spare time, I am a keen cyclist and love skiing when the chance permits. I look forward to hearing from parishioners on their views, ideas or concerns. Hilton is a great village and I look forward to being part of a team that continues to keep it flourishing.
Richard Norton
My wife, Lynn, and I have lived in Hilton for nearly 30 years, having acquired Hilton House as a “project” in 1993.
I was a partner in professional services firm, Deloitte, for over 35 years, running various of their businesses and serving on the Board for 10 years, as well as serving clients. Since I retired from Deloitte, I have been deeply involved with two local disability charities – Papworth Trust as Honorary Treasurer and Varrier-Jones Foundation as Trustee and, latterly, Chairman. My terms of office at the charities recently came to an end and I now have capacity to contribute to the Parish Council.
I have a number of outside interests including cycling and skiing, and you may have heard me playing guitar at Feast Week! I am also a keen traveller.
I love living in our unique village and am keen to help it flourish whilst preserving its rural environment.
Claire Sarkies
My husband, Nick, and I arrived in Hilton with two very small boys in 1988.
In retirement, after a career in education, I have been involved in U3A (Cambridge); chaired the Huntingdonshire branch of The Arts Society, organised the village Produce Show, contributed regularly to Spectrum and been involved this year in the exciting development of the Community Garden.
I have joined the Parish Council in the hope of preserving our special village atmosphere and beautiful environment, as well as embracing new initiatives.
Matt Stott
I arrived in Hilton as a 3 year old way back in 1982, and count myself very lucky to have spent my formative years in the village. Having spent time living in London, Australia and more recently Fenstanton, I’m really happy to have moved back to Hilton in 2021 with my wife and two young daughters, and look forward to them enjoying the village life that I did growing up.
After 15 years working in promotional events and marketing, I retrained in 2016 and now work as a Financial Controller just outside Cambridge. Outside of work, when not spending time with my family, I play guitar and bass in a local band – if you braved the rain and mud for the village Coronation celebrations, you might have spotted me on stage.
I look forward to serving as part of the team on the parish council; to contribute to maintaining the unique characteristics of our village, while helping it evolve as necessary for the benefit of all parishioners, younger and older.
Sarah Suckling
My husband and I moved to Fen Drayton in 2000 and then took the leap across the A14 to Hilton in 2009 when we bought a derelict property on Graveley Way. We spent 12 months renovating before moving in and have lived there ever since.
I started my career in the Health and Fitness industry managing corporate health clubs in London. I then stopped to raise my two children who are now teenagers. I was heavily involved in their primary school in Fen Drayton and was on the board of governors for several years with the last two years as Chair. I am now a project manager for a small development company.
I am pleased to join the Parish Council to preserve the uniqueness of the village but to also bring about change where it is needed for the future.
Christopher Wood
I moved into the Village in November 2023 from Hemingford Grey, where I have lived since 2001. I live with my wife and 2 children, who both attend Swavesey Village College. We have a Burmese cat called Aslan, who has already met many people in the village.
I am a chartered quantity surveyor and work locally as a managing surveyor for a leading UK Main Contractor. This involves working on complex projects during the preconstruction and construction phases. This requires a great deal of complex problem solving, whilst concurrently managing many stakeholders’ expectations.
I enjoy long distance running during my free time along with gardening and DIY projects. The cottage we have recently moved into is keeping us very busy and there is always something to do! I am also very interested in local history and protecting local heritage and assets.
By becoming a member of the Parish Council, I hope to use the knowledge and experience I have gained working on the commercial aspects of large construction projects; to assist the council and parishioners with future community projects and schemes. I am also looking forward to meeting and getting to know people within the parish.
Councillors Attendance Register
The Role of Parish Councillors
Councillors are collectively responsible for making Council policy, for which they are accountable to the electorate.
They are recognised nationally as the level of local government closest to people.
Councillors are not directly involved in the day-to-day provision of services to the public. This does not of course mean that there should be no contact between Councillors and the Clerk on such matters and, indeed, Councillors may often find that they are asked by electors to pursue matters on their behalf. However, Councillors have no executive authority, and will need to deal with all matters either through a properly constituted meeting or in liaison with the Clerk concerning, say, a Parish opportunity or problem.
It therefore follows that there are no circumstances where an individual Councillor can issue an instruction to the Clerk or a Contractor. Likewise, a Councillor must never act “on behalf of the Council” in the organisation of any function or service. Particular care should be taken in all types of communication, especially via comments to ensure understanding you speak as a “Parish Councillor” and not on behalf of the Council as a whole. Generally, the Clerk issues all correspondence on behalf of the Council .
Comments from the community should be addressed to the whole of the Council and not to any one Councillor as the Council is collectively responsible.
All Councillors will attend the Council meeting, held on the first Monday of each month except January and August. In addition, Councillors become members of Committees or Working Groups established in different service areas.
Councillors take decisions on matters of major policy at monthly meetings of the Council, after having considered the recommendations of any Committee or Working Group. A Councillor is voted to act as Chair by the collective Councillors on each Committee.
Copies of Parish Council Standing Orders are issued to each Councillor to ensure all procedural methods are understood and acted upon.
Statutory Powers and Duties
The Council derives its powers from statute. A few of these are mandatory (i.e. the Council must carry them out) but most are discretionary (i.e. the Council can carry them out if it wishes). In all cases, both Councillors and Clerk must work within the law.
